Freed from Fate
by Yunes
Summary: Fate saw the lonely paths of two strings and Her heart bled. Both craving companionship, destined to save their worlds, yet utterly alone. She took pity on their souls, entwined them... and set them free. The consequences be damned.
1. Chapter 1

Hello and welcome to my first fanfiction!

I don't wanna talk too much but you should be aware of a couple of things before you start.

First and most important of all, English is not my first language. Thus there will be mistakes. I will try to do as few as possible but since I don't have any beta reader yet you will have to endure any mistakes I make in ignorance. (Especially commas. Never really learned how exactly to use them in English)

Second and relating to the first point, I have no idea whatsoever whether I use British or American English or any other kind. Frankly, I have been to so many English talking countries in which I picked up a colorful mix of words, I wouldn't know where to start categorizing my vocabulary. So please if you care about one kind of proper English close your eyes while reading this!:)

Third this story will take a completely unique path and will follow an alternative plot. For the inuyasha part that will be clear from the start because I will start in Sesshomaru's younger years (of which few is known). You should also be aware that experiences form who we are and as the Daiyokai hasn't lived those 200 years until the start of the original Inuyasha time line yet he isn't yet the same Sesshomaru we know. Of course I will not change his basic personality but there will probably be differences later on compared to the original character. The same can be said about Naruto. While I try to keep as close as possible to original sources there will be differences resulting from _my_ original plot. And my plot will mainly take place in the Inuyasha world. If I can keep my readers interested long enough I do have plans to move on to the Naruto world, but for now I will focus on the Inuyasha world.

Last but not least, the disclaimer: I don't in any way own or try to make profit of Inuyasha or Naruto. But all the original characters, places and plot lines are mine!

Well, have fun;)

Ps: It goes without saying, but to be certain: this story contains major spoilers if you did not read and/or watch both series first (as I actually expect you did).

—

Sesshomaru, heir apparent to the lordship of the west, was nearing the climax of his second century and couldn't be any more happy. Sure, he wasn't the most popular young yokai on earth, but what did that really matter when his father promised to take him on his first hunt outside the Palace of the West? He was positively giddy with anticipation. Only his nobel upbringing prevented him from running around his room to shake off his excess of energy. He wanted to make his father proud. That had only ever been his aim in life.

Thus, when the doors to his rooms opened and revealed Hatsuo, his minder, his face fell. Anticipating this reaction the lesser inu yokai preemptively held up his hands. "It isn't what you think, little Lord."

Face cleared of emotions the young Daiyokai raised one perfectly formed brow. "Then this Sesshomaru's father isn't too preoccupied to spend time with his only child, again?", he asked flatly.

"Well… yes. But he has a very good reason", Hatsuo hurriedly replied. Sesshomaru, used to the frequent excuses of his progenitor, stayed silent. He didn't even ask, yet his minder explained further: "The Inu no Taisho has to attend a meeting with the dragon ambassador. He just showed up half an hour ago. But don't worry. We won't have to delay your first hunt. After all it is a very important rite of passage. I will simply accompany you in your fathers stead."

The young heir simply nodded, straightened his posture and calmly walked past the other yokai, an empty feeling in his stomach. He didn't even know why he still cared, why it still hurt. His father hadn't really spent time with him in over a hundred years. In fact, he couldn't even remember the last time the two of them had spoken privately, outside of the courtiers earshot. One would think he was used to it by now. He simply wasn't worth the time of the Great Dog General. His jaw clenched.

On his way to the palace gates he could hear the lesser yokai talking. They were always talking. And always about him. He could clearly hear their whispers. Once upon a time he thought them plainly disrespectful, but he had slowly learned that they simply didn't believed his hearing that good. He was exceptional when they thought him an unfeeling, unaware statue. Apparently, according to the court gossip, he was unapproachable, unnaturally apathetic and downright fearsome. He put them on edge. Whenever he met someone's gaze with his blazing eyes they hurriedly averted their own and unconsciously backed away from him. Once it had hurt him. He hadn't understood. Now he was used to it. He still didn't understand but he no longer cared.

He would show them all what he was capable of. He had three days until his one-hundred-and-fiftieth birthday. On that day he was supposed to pay tribute to his lord by offering him his hunting trophy. He would make everyone see that he was a strong Daiyokai worthy of their praise and a place amongst them.

Serenely wandering the surrounding woods, he ignored the presence of his minder, who was only there to watch and witness, not interfere under any circumstances. Never once was he heard. The heir to the West never had any problems to stay silent and prey was easily found. He deftly cached a pair of rabbits wit his poisonous claws but wasn't remotely satisfied. For his rite of passage he needed something more impressive, something awe inspiring. He had three whole days to accomplish it after all. More than enough time to hunt something really worth his rite.

See that it couldn't be any other way, on the third day he was on his way back to the palace carrying the carcass of a most impressive black bear, his chest swelling with pride. As elated as he was to bring home such a beautiful yet relatively dangerous trophy, he didn't smell his attacker until a sword imbedded itself into his back.

Crying as the full amount of pain accompanying such a grievous wound hit him, he instinctively turned around and stroke out with poisonous claws. Sheer dumb luck and his attackers surprise were his saving grace. He couldn't have aimed any better if he forced his vision to clear. The pain was to all encompassing like nothing he had ever felt before.

"Sesshomaru-sama!"

The annoying voice of his minder ripped him back into reality. In an epic show of will he gritted his teeth and focused. The assailant lay dead to his feet. A panther yokai, he absently noticed. He had killed him with a poisonous strike directly at the jugular. His attacker never had a chance. And it was pure dumb luck and instinct that had saved him. He looked into dead flat eyes. He had killed someone. He heaved up every last bit of meat he had eaten this hunt.

Finally he noticed the steadying hand on his shoulder and reared back. Indoctrinated pride made him straighten himself to reclaim a semblance of dignity. He used all his reclaimed resolve to coldly command: "Stay away. You are only to watch this Sesshomaru's first hunt rite, not interfere."

"But Young Lord, this was-"

Sesshomaru cut him off aggressively with a deep growl that intensified the pain in his lover back. Aware that pulling the sword out would only make him bleed out, he apathetically repositioned the bear and added the assailants remains to his burden. Suppressing a grunt, he slowly but surely made his was back to the palace.

He must have looked even more frightening than before, because everyone skittered hastily out of his was as soon as he reached his home. Hatsuo warily and worriedly followed him silently like a shadow as they made their way to the great audience hall, in which all relevant lords and ladies had already gathered to witness their lord's heir's first rite of passage. Solemn silence engulfed the hall as Sesshomaru let the two corpses slid onto the marbled floor. He raised his gaze and regarded heavily breathing the empty throne, a droplet of swat running along his temple.

After a few moments of silence Futoshi, his fathers second in command, stepped up next to the throne and declared in a low baritone voice: "His lordship is unable to attend."

Sesshomaru snarled, half in pain, half in frustrated anger. Then he collected himself. It didn't matter. This wasn't for his father. This was _his_ rite of passage and damn anyone who would presume otherwise! Thus he barked loudly to the collected nobility to catch their attention and spread his arms wide. "This Sesshomaru, Heir to the West, presents himself! This pack is proud! This pack is strong! Today this Sesshomaru adds to this strength! Today this pack gains a new hunter!"

All around him his people overcame their shock and barked in agreement and celebration. Not long after he was the eye of a roaring storm of yokai. It felt good to be finally acknowledged for something he did, not who he was or who people assumed he was. This was his moment. And yet the empty throne seemed to mock him. His jaw clenched.

He briefly closed his eyes, took a deep breath and calmly strode outside, no longer wanting to stay in that empty feeling place. As soon as he reached the hallway Hatsuo pulled him into a side chamber in which one of the rare palace healer stood in the ready. Not even twitching as the sword was pulled out, he calmly concentrated to keep his breathing steady. Before long he could feel the warmth of healing yoki sooth his back.

"I couldn't completely heal the wound, Mylord. I advise you to keep the bandages on for at least three days to be sure it heals nicely." The young heir never showed any sign he had listened and simply left as soon as the healer took his hands off him. He was tired. But he couldn't - no he wouldn't - sleep until he knew, what was so important as to keep his father away from his own son's first rite of passage.

Always having been particularly light on his feet, Sesshomaru neared his fathers chambers unnoticed despite his sluggishness. Oddly enough, there weren't any kind of guards posted on his doors. He frowned and approached more cautiously. When he heard an undeniably female and unfamiliar voice, he halted and skittered into a niche that he usually used to catch a glimpse of his father when he, as usual, overlooked spending time with his son in favor of attending 'important matters'.

"You know, it hasn't even been a day since I last saw you, my dear." The unknown woman was fair skinned and had an abundance of wavy, black hair. She was wearing a costly, blue kimono with intricate bird patterns, clearly of the best quality imaginable, and pompous, sparkling jewelry made of gold and sapphires. Two other facts registered in his mind simultaneously. For one, the female was obviously human. Secondly, she laid in his fathers arms, their clothes in disarray.

The Great Dog General smiled the most radiant smile Sesshomaru had ever seen on his fathers face und kissed the woman lasciviously, while further opening her kimono and unveiling big and heavy breasts, the nipples evidently aroused. One look at them had the Inu no Taisho sucking them as if his life depended on it. The woman in his arms moaned with pleasure and arched her back to give him better access as he let his hands wander down and up her tights.

The young heir stared transfixed, in blatant shock, and couldn't move.

"Wait", the woman nearly cried out as she was apparently trying to keep her wits together. "I have to tell you something." His father visibly restraint himself with great effort and looked down into big, round eyes of hazelnut. "I-" Her voice faltered, her eyes hesitant. Toga affectionately kissed her temple and waited patiently. That seemed to give her the courage to continue: "I'm pregnant."

The Inu no Taisho blinked once, then twice. He sniffed carefully. Then a big smile stretched over his face, reaching from one ear to the other effortlessly. He laughed, picked her up and twirled her around, making her squeak. "That is wonderful!", he exclaimed joyously, "A child! Our child! We will love and spoil him rotten!"

She snorted and swatted his arm. "And what makes you thing it will be a boy?"

He simply grinned. "Dog intuition."

She rolled her eyes, but couldn't even reply as the father of her unborn child started devouring her lips, his claws carelessly ripping apart the last bit of the clinging, blue kimono and shedding his own.

Sesshomaru watched strangely detached as his father, stark naked, begun to fuck another woman than his mother, fucked the woman who apparently carried his bastard half brother. He didn't actively register the gasps and moans of their fornication. The sounds simply etched themselves into his mind, the image of his father fucking the woman he loved more than he ever cared for his wife, let alone his son, burning itself into his memory.

As they lay spent and in completion entangled with each other and reasserting their love for each other the young Daiyokai calmly turned around and left the royal wing unnoticed. No one questioned him leaving the palace after his first successful hunt. They, for the first time ever, payed genuine deference for him. He had the freedom and respect he always wanted. Yet they seemed insufficient to fill the hollow feeling in his chest.

He reached the clearing of his first 'hunt', his first kill. It still was covered in the stench of blood and vomit. Yet he felt nothing as he regarded the brown colored grass. Emotional exhaustion freed him of any feeling he could have felt.

He simply had nothing more to give. Ever.

A blinding white light suddenly appeared in the center of the massacre and forced him to shield his sensitive eyes.

—

Naruto Uzumaki couldn't be any happier. He had successfully returned from his first mission outside the village. That it was subsequently declared an A-ranked mission made his personal victory even sweeter. Not to mention the bridge named in his honor. Acknowledgement. His whole body shook from a sense of triumph. It was an emotion he had only ever felt after receiving his forehead protector and thus graduation from the academy. It was elation.

Full of excessive energy he jumped up from his bed and raced outside. He felt so happy he could burst. He simply had to share this with everyone in the village. He stopped by various shops and greeted the owners cheerfully, never really noticing them not responding likewise. Happily crackling he made his rounds all through Konohas streets, never registering any kind of negative stares.

Finally stopping to take a breath, he leaned on a wall to greedily inhale air. He savored the moment as best he could, his grin never leaving his face for even a second. Then he heard a familiar voice. But before he could lordly announce himself, he heard what they were talking about and it peaked his interest.

"I know, apparently the whole village knew, bar our generation and younger. I still can't believe they wouldn't tell us before."

Answering Sakuras lovely voice was Inos harder one. She sniffed derisively. "But really, I am hardly surprised. That dead last good for nothing freak always seemed off. At least now we know why. He is a monster."

Naruto froze as Sakura made a snarking sound. "I know. He always rubbed me the wrong way. I still can't believe they would let him stay in our team. My dear Sasuke and I protested loudly. We want that monster with us even less than the day they grouped us. But the Hokage said, we couldn't change teams once formed. I seriously don't know how I will even stand his presence next training session."

For the first time ever he heard Ino make a sympathetic noice towards her best friend and/or rival. "I genuinely feel for you two and Kakashi-sensei. It really must be hard not to let on, that you guys know he is the demon, that destroyed Konoha and took so many lives. Did you know the most shocking thing about that?" Her friend must have shaken her head in denial, because Ino explained in a slightly raised voice: "I overheard Asuma-sensei talking about that day when the story about the awakening of the demon made its rounds. Apparently he not only ran rampage through the whole village, he also killed his own parents that day."

Sakura and Naruto simultaneously took in a sharp breath. Then the former shrieked quietly and whispered vehemently: "What?! But that is horrible! What kind of monster kills his own parents on the day it is born?! Imagine living with that guilt! I guess I couldn't. I'd rather take my life than life with that knowledge. But then, does a demon even feel like you and I do? I mean-"

The shinobi in training never learnt what the love of his life meant. They moved out of earshot. He was too shocked to even contemplate moving. Frozen was what he was, completely and utterly frozen, simply leaning against the wall completely frozen, unwilling to process what he had heard. Even beginning to contemplate it shoved a stake through his heart. It became difficult to breath, to think, to live.

Suddenly he recalled that day by the bridge, his namesake bridge. How utterly empty that sentiment suddenly felt. It couldn't even begin to quell the all encompassing feeling of rage and power he lived through briefly. He had never felt anything like it before. Subconsciously afraid, he had shoved those thoughts aside and had focused entirely on the success of the mission, completely ignoring the memory of rampaging energy just underneath his fingertips.

It had felt so good.

It made him sick.

This was the power that protected him and took so many lives. The power that soothed him like a blanket and made his life in the village living hell. The power that had kissed him like a lover he had never known and killed his parents. It had felt so good und so utterly wrong. He longed for it with every fiber of his being, with his very soul. He vomited.

After emptying his stomach in a not abandoned street without anyone caring except to look at him in disgust, he could finally sympathize with the villagers and their hatred. He truly was a monster, a demon. Not worth even a shred of the love and recognition he had longed for his whole life. Nauseated he swayed and fell to his knees landing in his own vomit. He didn't care.

All his life he had been told, he was a monster. He ultimately had no choice but to believe it. He was a demon, an abomination that had killed not only a good part of the very village he wanted to protect but his own parents.

" _Imagine living with that guilt! I guess I couldn't. I'd rather take my life than life with that knowledge."_

Suddenly a peerless calmness engulfed him. He knew exactly what to do. Without hesitation a kunai found its way into his hand. He regarded it soberly. He know dozens of ways to accomplish this one simple task, but he supposed, he should follow a reliable, dead certain path. His mind emptied and his hand serenely found the way to his own neck, never once shaking.

Suddenly a blinding light engulfed him and forced his eyes shut. Then he knew no more.

—

Fate smiled sadly.

She had personally woven those two particular strings into the pattern of life and death. The moment She had finished weaving them, She had regretted it. It wasn't often, that Fate took pity on a soul. Ultimately Her patterns always found a sound completion. This was also the case here. Yet She couldn't deny that those exact two paths were painfuller than any soul should have to endure.

Thus She changed the pattern. She chose those two pitiable souls and entwined their strings.

That was as dangerous as it was beautiful, for She could never see the end of predestined paths that She had changed. Henceforth the lives and deaths of those two souls She no longer held.

She had set them free.


	2. Chapter 2

Holy sh***. Someone tell me again why I chose as my main characters two people with absolutely exhausting speech patterns?! At least I believe Sesshomaru seemed authentic. I might have to reread a couple of manga chapters or rewatch an episode or two to get a better feeling for Narutos way of talking. Let me know if you find something worth criticizing.

Oh for anyone who ist pissed at the characters behavior: bear in mind that both of them are going through emotional upheaval and are coping differently. Also they are both of a twelve year old emotionally scarred mental state (and at different stages of maturity and different kinds of upbringing).

—

As the light subsided, Sesshomaru carefully peaked at the clearing from behind his raised arms. He beheld the most horrendous but the most fascinating sight he had seen in a very long time. There in blood and vomit laid a young yokai about his age wearing the most hideous garments the young heir had ever seen. They were screamingly orange. Idly he asked himself whether the stranger thought it a good diversion strategy in combat. It at least had given him pause. So maybe there was some merit to that thought.

But that wasn't what kept his sight transfixed in fascination. No, the boy was indubitably a young Daiyokai. A kitsune Daiyokai if the faint smell was anything to go by. He had rarely seen another Daiyokai than Inus, because he had previously been too young to be allowed to attend any official meetings with other clans. Diligently studying the stranger he caught sight of the same protruding fangs and claws which he himself had and three slender, bright orange whisker marks on each cheek. The latter startled him a bit. He had yet to come across a demon that bore even remotely similar markings to himself and his father. Equally intriguing was the unkept mop of golden yellow hair. It was unlike any hair color he had seen until now. He didn't recall reading about any kitsune clan with these kind of yokai marks. And he had read a lot.

A quiet, pitiful moan escaped the stranger's lips and his eye lids fluttered. After a moment startlingly blue eyes met molten gold. Both pairs having the same narrow pupils of a predator. Then the stranger cursed crudely and reached for his fallen weapon. Anticipating and bracing for an attack he reacted instinctively by disarming his opponent. Only to realize that the other boy had not aimed at Sesshomaru, but himself.

The young heir was aghast. What in the name of the four Lords was the stranger thinking? Obviously not much because following his act of insanity he started crying hard. Never having had to deal with someone about the same age as himself the Inu Daiyokai wondered, if that reaction was normal. But using himself as a criterion for young Daiyokai behavior he supposed that it was not. Still, he was out of his depth.

Cautiously he crouched down in front of the stranger and sniffed to perceive any other smell than blood and vomit. He recognized disgust and desperation, hurt and a deep feeling of longing. For what, he could not discern, but what he perceived so far had convinced him that the other yokai did not seek him harm. He was merely emotionally distraught.

Determining a course of action, because that was what Sesshomaru did best, he declared: "This Sesshomaru shall keep you." The stranger hiccuped, blinked confusedly and then sought his gaze slowly and uncomprehendingly. "You are obviously lost. So this Sesshomaru is keeping you."

A couple of blinks later the stranger still didn't believe his ears and looked around. _Really_ looked. And for the first time he seemed to realize that he was in a completely foreign place. His gaze dropped to the floor, his head hanging and his moving hair revealing the same pointed ears that the heir to the West had. "You wouldn't want me", he whispered sadly, "no one wants me. I- I am a-a d-d-demon." He shut his eyes and another tear ran over his cheek. "I-I deserve to die", he explained nearly inaudibly.

The Inu yokai looked at him incredulously. The fair haired stranger seemed to have that effect on him repeatedly. Not an easy feat at all. Which made him all the more determined to keep this source of entertainment. "This Sesshomaru is a demon, a Daiyokai, just like you. This Sesshomaru does not think,we deserve to die."

The stranger's head stop up. Blue eyes met the golden ones in shock. Seeing that he wouldn't be forming coherent sentences anytime soon Sesshomaru explained: "This Sesshomaru makes you part of his pack. Come, you are hardly presentable."

Just as he turned to leave he caught sight of the kitsune's face. A most brilliant smile had positively usurped it. He let go of a light, happy chuckle, scratched his neck in obvious embarrassment and exclaimed full of renewed energy: "Alright, dattebayo!"

—

Naruto felt like he was dreaming. He had woken up to a massive headache and the fact that he was still alive. Everything felt a little strange and overwhelming. But he ignored it in favor of finally righting the world of his mistaken existence. When the kunai was ripped from his hand he couldn't release the building pressure in his chest by any other way. He started to cry without realizing. Too caught up in the feeling of failure and self-disgust taking up another weapon didn't even cross his mind.

The strangers words only sluggishly entered his consciousness. He needed a couple of rapid heart beats to understand their meaning. At first he was too preoccupied by the fact that a villager was talking kindly to him. Then he blinked slowly and took in his surroundings. This wasn't Konoha anymore. In fact, he had never seen this place before, let alone that silver haired stranger. With a feeling of dread he hung his head. If the stranger knew the truth, he wouldn't be so kind. Yet Naruto felt obliged to inform him, lest he came to harm like so many before. He was dangerous and the incident by the bridge had made it obvious he had no control over himself.

"This Sesshomaru is a demon, a Daiyokai, just like you. This Sesshomaru does not think,we deserve to die."

Shock. Complete and utter shock was the only thing he could feel at that moment. There was someone else like him? _And_ he thought him deserving to live despite their nature? But then, surely the stranger hadn't killed a huge amount of villagers including his own parents. Or didn't demons care? Maybe he was an anomaly.

Still… the demon had invited him into his pack… Naruto knew what that meant. He had heard the Inuzuka clan talk like that. It meant… it meant family. Plain and simple. For a moment he was on the edge of tears again, but then he felt a huge smile widening in his face. Never _ever_ had anyone wanted him as family. Not even when they didn't know what he was. But this strange boy knew and he still wanted him. Suddenly he didn't care anymore that he was a demon and felt embarrassed about his earlier outburst. If being a demon meant that he was going to have a family, then maybe it wasn't so bad after all. He ignored the silent whisper in his head, that tried to remind him of all the deaths he had caused, and exclaimed in his usual cheerful manner: "Alright, dattebayo!"

He followed the other boy - was his name Sesshomaru? - with a slight spring in his step. He felt a little overwhelmed. And not only emotionally. Now that he wasn't retreating into himself anymore, he noticed just how different this place was. Everything smelled so much more, everything was brighter. His skin prickled with each tiniest amount of wind. The whole world seemed somehow more… intense.

His thoughts stopped abruptly when his gaze caught the hugest and most impressing building he had ever seen. It was a magnificent and beautiful palace, fortified with massive stone walls and heavily guarded. Suddenly he was nervous. This was obviously the other boy's home. And he was obviously loaded. The guards didn't even questioned him for bringing in a stranger. So he really must be well known. He felt a little inadequate with his dirty, ratty, old jumpsuit. But then, it was the only piece of clothing he could afford first with his meager orphan charity and then with the lousy pay of D-ranked missions. Eating as much ramen as he did, didn't help either. He had hoped to buy new ones with the increased income of doing higher ranked missions, but…

He shook his head and focused on his surroundings yet again. He saw people eying him interestedly, but not disgustedly. That was a first for him. And it felt good. And why wouldn't they? All of them seemed a little strange, stranger than usual that is. Sesshomaru had said it was a _pack_. That probably meant _other_ demons. Maybe all of them were demons. He was no longer alone. A grin sneaked onto his lips.

But the people in the palace stared even more at the silver haired boy and bowed deeply in respect when he passed them. Sesshomaru didn't even seem to noticed. He confidently strode towards his chambers. A minder, who had obviously been waiting for him despairingly, jumped up as he noticed him. "Sesshomaru-sama! I am so glad that you are alright. When I-"

"This Sesshomaru needs a bath to be drawn and appropriate garment to be prepared", he declared curtly, cutting off his minder's words and making the pair of servants waiting in his rooms scurry away to oblige his orders after bowing deeply.

The minder blinked at the sight of Naruto and his hand subconsciously rested on his sword hilt. "Young lord, who ist this?", he asked cautiously.

Sesshomaru looked back over his shoulder. "He is mine", he declared simply as if it was obvious. Then a considering countenance crossed his face as he locked his gaze with Naruto's. "This Sesshomaru is Sesshomaru, Heir to the West. What does this Sesshomaru call you?"

"My name is Naruto U-" He started confidently as usual and then faltered. Did he really have a right to take his parents name? He slightly shook his head. No he did not. Not when it was he, who killed them. He effortlessly forced another smile to his lips. That he could do without fault. He had a lot of practice smiling when not feeling like it. "Just Naruto, dattebayo!"

Sesshomaru, who was only about half a hand taller than him, nodded his head gravely, as if that was the most serious discussion he had ever had in his life. But Naruto didn't mind. The other boy seemed kind enough and accepted him for what he was. He at least could do the same for him, despite his strange manner of speaking and lordy attitude. But then again, there were stranger people he knew back in the village.

He suppressed memories of his old home and followed the other boy into a marbled bathroom with a gigantic pool in the middle, unwittingly ignoring the minder, who sputtered behind them. Sesshomaru carelessly shrugged off his sumptuous and bloodied kimono and beckoned Naruto to join him in the hot water, when the latter caught sight of his bandages. "What happened?"

The young heir carelessly lifted a shoulder. "It is of no consequence."

Naruto gaped. "But you are hurt! That _is_ pretty important to me." After all Sesshomaru had said, they were to become family, and family cared for one another, right? He wasn't perfectly sure. But he assumed, family was automatically precious people. And at least he had lernt, that one had to protect their precious people. Even though it seemed he only had the other demon boy left and the rest of them couldn't even stand his presence anymore.

Taken aback by the vehemence of that exclamation Sesshomaru blinked two times then added: "An assassin tried to kill this Sesshomaru. Now they are dead." Then he averted his gaze again and it looked like he studies something far away. "Come in. Your reek offends this Sesshomaru's nose."

Torn between sorrow - for he could see clearly that the kill weighted on his soul after having experienced that feeling recently, if differently - and indignation over the insult though it was true, he chose to approach the pool silently for once. When he shrugged off his baggy overall, he noticed faintly he had a fluffy, red tail attached to his backside. He blinked, and took another look. Then he screamed high pitched like a little girl, even though he would later deny that with all his might.

Sesshomaru, his minder and his two servants watched in disbelief as Naruto was running around stark naked in a circle, trying to get a good look on his tail. The shinobi in training couldn't believe his eyes. Since when had that been there? Was that the kyuubis fault? Suddenly he paused and looked at his stomach. He knew, one could not normally see the seal. But a feeling in his gut told him, that it wasn't there anymore. As well as the kyuubi. He couldn't explain, how he knew it. It was like, there had been a humming in the back of his mind his whole life that he never even noticed. Not until it was gone. And suddenly everything was silent.

He looked at his hands and noticed, they rather resembled the claws he had had when overcome by the kyuubis power. Along his shoulders, elbows, waist and knees double orange stripes marked his body. His feet, too, seemed to be morphed into something looking like a crossbreed between normal feet and a predators elongated paws. He cautiously lifted his clawed fingers to his face and felt his smooth, slightly broader than usual whisker marks. If he could, he'd bet they were orange as well. At least it was a color he liked.

"Naruto?" His ear twitched slightly and he subconsciously moved his hands to his still human but pointy tipped feeling ears. He bit his lip. A canine drew blood. He would not panic. He would not panic. He would n- "Naruto, are you well?"

He screamed anew. "I have pointy ears! And claws! And strange marks! And a bloody tail! How the hell do you think I feel?!"

Sesshomaru, completely unimpressed by his outburst, calmly inquired: "You do realize, you are Daiyokai, do you not? This Sesshomaru does not understand how you could have missed your birthmarks for a century and a half. Are you suffering from memory loss?"

The blond haired boy giggled at him incredulously. "What the hell do ya mean 'a century and a half'?! I am just over twelve years old! I didn't even know, I was a demon until a couple of months ago. And how the bloody hell do ya call this things birthmarks?!"

Sesshomaru's ears twitched on account of the other boy's volume. By the Lords, he had one strong pair of lungs. "Calm down. You are murdering this Sesshomaru's ears. Hatsuo take your hand off your blade. This Sesshomaru is in no danger. Now, _sit down_." Numbly Naruto let himself fall into the pool. The hot water soothing his agitated body. "Now explain yourself to this Sesshomaru."

Naruto hesitated just for a moment, then sighed. This boy was willing to be his family. He supposed, one of them had to take the first step to build up the necessary trust between precious people. "I used to be human." At that the golden eyes slightly widened, but the silver haired boy stayed silent, so he could speak freely. "But on the day of my birth a powerful demon attacked and killed many people. They couldn't stop him, so the hokage, the village leader I mean, sealed him inside me."

Sesshomaru snarled quietly. Not knowing whether this was a good or bad sight, Naruto hurriedly pointed on his stomach and further explained: "There used to be a seal. I couldn't see it. But now that it is gone I feel that it isn't there anymore. Does that make sense?" He didn't wait for a response and rambled on: "And then the seal was weak or damaged or I don't know. But then I had the demons power and could feel it and use it and-" He faltered slightly. "Everyone hates me", he whispered, but then picked up quickly, "but then there was this strange light. And I don't know what happened. You were there and said we were family. And now we're here and my body changed and I don't feel the demon anymore. But I still feel his power. And it is all just very confusing!"

For a moment everything was quiet. Then the Heir to the West approached him and sniffed. Afterwards he leaned back again, contemplating, and said: "This Sesshomaru believes, you and that demon merged. While he and his power made you Daiyokai, you retained your consciousness and control over that body."

Naruto thought hard and nodded slowly. "I think, I understand." Suddenly he looked at the it her boy with widened, clear blue eyes. "Does that mean, you don't want me anymore? I mean, now that ya know I'm not a _real_ demon and only _became_ a demon, ya know." Near the end his mumbling grew nearly incoherent.

The gaze that Sesshomaru regarded him with was cold and he grazed himself for yet another rejection because of what he was. He simply fitted nowhere. Neither real human, nor born demon. Maybe it was better after all if he- "This Sesshomaru has claimed you as his own. You are pack. You will honor this claim. To this Sesshomaru you smell like kitsune Daiyokai. That means you are. You simply need to learn our customs. Now wash and sleep. This Sesshomaru will announce you to the court tomorrow." He paused and looked at his attendants. "And you will keep this story to yourselves."

It was a very happy Naruto with his trademark grin that spent the rest of the bath in exhausted relief and unbelief. He still hadn't wrapped his head around the fact that he finally had someone that genuinely wanted him to be around.

—

"Lord Toga, your son has taken in a Kitsune Daiyokai about the same age as himself."

The Inu no Taisho twinkled lightly. "Is that so? I suppose I will have a look at the pup tomorrow." He absentmindedly stroked his lovers still flat stomach and inhaled her unique scent.

"That is not all, Mylord." The Lord of the West drew his brows together. The art of the elevated brow would forever be denied to him. He let that particular skill gracefully for his wife and their child. "The kit claims to have been fully human before merging with and ultimately becoming a yokai."

Toga drew in a sharp breath. "How extraordinary. Keep this story out of anyone's reach. And if Sesshomaru is willing to accept a former human, then maybe there is hope for him after all. Perhaps he will desist from following his mother's footsteps."

Hatsuo regarded his Lord curiously. "Will you then, finally, at least speak with your son? You do realize, that this is all he ever wants."

A long suffering sigh echoed through the chamber. "I honestly don't know. I don't want to repeat my mistakes once again. He is so much like his mother, not only in looks, but in mannerism, speech and thoughts."

"Yet he chose to be here", reinforced Hatsuo his position in the matter firmly.

"I suppose so."

—

"Fate."

She smiled sweetly as She turned around to regard Her visitor. "Hello, my dear. You have finally been selfless, I see. Just like the Sage-"

"That has nothing to do with the old man, woman", he interrupted Her harshly, "you didn't exactly give me a choice."

Her smile widened. "Ah, but that is not exactly true, as you very well know, my dear. You could have continued on your path. I did not move your string apart from his. I simply put his onto a new path, one of his own choosing. You on the other hand had more choices than anyone before. You could have stayed on my predestined pattern. It has already repaired itself from my ripping his string out. Or you could have easily followed your vessel in his without paying the prize. Yet you chose to create your own. I let the three of you free. While all that came before got two choices, you had three. And yet you accuse me of not giving you a choice?"

He snorted gruffly and stepped up to stand next to Her and regard Her intricate weavings. It had a multitude of colors and twists. Though a couple of times he saw strings of pure gold. Most of them dull and still in finished patterns, a few shining and moving seemingly on their own accord, their story not yet finished. "Yeah, well, who in their right mind would have wanted to continue being imprisoned or enslaved for another couple of eons. Free will is a fine thing, no matter the cost."

She turned to him, surprised. "You have changed more than anticipated. I honestly hadn't thought you would choose this path. But then, maybe I was influenced by those that came before." As he raised a reddish eyebrow, She explained: "I have given all of your siblings the same choice in the past."

Taken aback his red mane flung around, as he sharply tuned to face the goddess. She merely raised an elegant brow at the outburst, decidedly amused. "What, did you believe, in all that time, I hadn't at one point or another given them a way out? You were merely the last one to choose. All of them declined and chose, not to break free of my patterns. They thought the price too steep. It seems like you are the bravest of your siblings."

She smiled freely at him and moved closer, a light hand on his bicep. Her full lips caressed his ear softly as She whispered: "Either the wisest or the most foolish of them all." Her hot breath burned on his ear and not a pleasurable way. It was literally burning his essence away. Yet he could not move.

"I hope, you are prepared for the future, my dear Kurama. Because even I cannot anticipate your path anymore."

Suddenly She was gone and he knew, She wouldn't let him find

Her again. Fate would choose the next time they spoke again. Kurama found, he did not like this. At all.

And he also knew, he hadn't yet paid the full prize and neither had Naruto. Not that he cared for the boy.


	3. Chapter 3

Okay, i know that Naruto really doesn't say all that much and Sesshomaru uncharacteristically talks a lot, but bear in mind, that Naruto is in a new environment (not that _that_ ever stopped him) and currently unsure of himself. Next chapter we will see good old talkative and confident (and annoying) Naruto again:)

Btw, any reviews are welcome! I wanna know how u like the basis of the story so far.

—

" _You should never harm your siblings. They are your family and everything you have on this world." The old mans words were kind, loving. "And you are also still connected. Harming your siblings will only harm yourselves. That is true for every family."_

 _He himself was only a small kit. But the old man's words seemed wise. Family was important. Then he paused. "But aren't you family as well? Why can't we just stay with you? You know so much."_

 _The old man laughed lightly and caressed that particular spot behind his ear. He practically drooled from contentment. He really had to concentrate hard not to miss anything the old man said. "Well, I suppose you could call me your father. But every kit must ultimately leave their parents to explore the world. It is also safer for you to stay apart."_

 _His earthy brother whined unhappily. "But you said humans were kind. Why would it be unsafe?"_

 _Deeply sighing the old man moved on to pet the tanuki. "I am sorry, son. But the world is not that simple. Where there is light, there is also darkness. For every human that means you well, there is one who does not. But do not worry yourselves. I have seen to it, that the priests of your temples are trustworthy and loyal."_

" _But when can we see you again?", piped up the tiny voice of their turtle like brother. "I will miss you."_

 _Though his siblings did not see, he did. The old man faltered. His smile was sad. And he knew then, that he would never see his father again._

" _There will come a time when all of you must gather again and fight for what is right. But before that time you must first live and learn in this world. Otherwise, how would you know, what you are protecting?"_

 _His eight siblings nodded eagerly, but he just looked at the old man and tried to memorize his face._

—

"Young Lord, maybe you should wait with the announcement."

Sesshomaru regarded his minder coolly, then disregarded him equally dispassionately in favor of striding into his guest chamber which had never before in a hundert and fifty years been occupied. Now, there was a boy psychologically and physically (even if not biologically) the same age as him sleeping not so soundly.

He drew his brows together minimally and thoughtfully regarded the other boy. He was undeniably Kitsune Daiyokai. He would undoubtedly grow either into a powerful ally or a powerful enemy. But that was not, why he was here, in his guest chamber. He had taken in the other boy on a whim. Because he was different and yet similar to himself. They had both been miserable yesterday. Still, he was not known to be compassionate nor caring, with good reason. He was simply not interested in anything else than pleasing his father.

 _And look where that got me._ Discarded for a human whore and a Hanyou bastard. The Great Dog General had fallen deep indeed. And his heir refused to follow his footsteps any longer. He would become powerful by himself, for himself. And he would be the best Lord of the West there ever was.

That still did not answer the question of Narutos existence within his private chambers. He looked again at the sun kissed colored boy and involuntarily smirked. _Sun kissed._ While he was moon blessed. They would make quite a pair. And it would be nice to have someone solely loyal to himself, not to his father. Someone he could actually rely on. He had no delusions. Hatsuo and his servants reported his every move. It seemed Fate saw fit to bestow upon him a companion who valued family above all. Unlike his father.

He paused. Fate. It must indeed have been Fate. How unlikely was it, that a companion that he didn't even know he longed for, would arrive right in front of him by means neither of them could explain. It could of course always be an elaborate trap. But he could not see Naruto as that good an actor. And if he was, his story would have been more believable. No, this one time he wanted to believe. Believe in someone else than himself.

So he gently nudged the restless boy to wake him up. And epically failed. Naruto just mumbled incoherently and turned around, pillow in a death grip. He sighed silently. It seemed this would need more than a gentle hand. After going through several means not only but including excessive noise, violence and blackmail, he finally found one that worked. A bucket of ice cold water. He had no scruples whatsoever. He _had_ tried to wake him gently first after all. And of course that tiny lift of his lips was completely imaginary, as he handed the now grumpy but awakened boy a Kimono.

"We will need to procure you an adequate wardrobe. You cannot use this Sesshomaru's clothes indefinitely."

Naruto lowered his head in shame. "I'm sorry. I will work off whatever you pay for me. I really don't need that much. And I can-"

"Cease this foolishness. This Sesshomaru has named you pack. Thus this Sesshomaru will provide until you can take care of yourself. It is pack law. This Sesshomaru was named hunter yesterday after all." Seeing Narutos uncomprehending look, he elucidated: "The pack provides for its own that aren't yet capable of doing so themselves. Within a pack it is the closest relative's duty to do so. Since this Sesshomaru is your closest relative, this Sesshomaru will provide. A hunter is every yokai above the age of one hundred and fifty that passed their rite of passage. It is a rank that proves that one can contribute to the pack." This much talking outside of classes was certainly exhausting. But then again this was education and it was, as he had said, his responsibility to provide it.

Naruto grinned all encompassingly and - to his utter mortification - hugged the young Lord. "Thank you, Sesshomaru!" For a moment he stood there frozen. Then, thankfully, the blond Daiyokai removed himself from his body and he could breath again. Not knowing how to deal with it, he nodded sharply and left the room, inwardly shaking. He couldn't remember when - _if_ \- he had ever been hugged before.

He preoccupied himself by dressing in an elaborate white silk kimono with a magenta wave pattern and blue obi, choosing an equally deep blue haori with his mother's crescent moon insignia drawn in a white color. Of that he actually felt proud. He hadn't worn her crest since she left the palace but it was oddly fitting to use it now. After all he did just decide to rebel against his father.

When Naruto finally showed himself, he was barely adequately dressed. He inwardly sighed. It was obvious that no one had ever shown him how to wear a kimono with dignity and grace. So, as soon as he could grip him, he stripped the boy and redressed him, this time properly.

When the Kitsune whined about all that 'stuff' being unnecessary, he calmly explained: "It is not stupid. One will always evaluate you based on your appearance and posture first, your words second and your personality third. With proper presentation you can win a fight before it even started. Often without lifting a finger." At this he perked up visibly. So his companion was a fighter. That was good. Otherwise he wouldn't know how he would plan on beating the brashness out of him. A new sparring partner was always nice. "If you look intimidating without seemingly trying to do so, a lot of weaklings won't bother you. It might even give you the edge in a fight against someone good, because this might cause them to be wary. The wary hesitates. And you win the fight in exactly that moment." Naruto did look like he was suitably impressed, but also like this was going all over his head. Sesshomaru decidedly lashed the final knot together and realize at that same moment, that his little project was going to be a nerve wrecking challenge.

But he had to admit. If this right now was anything to go by, it would be worth it. Naruto did look impressive with the right clothing. The kimono was, of course, mainly white. It was Sesshomaru's favorite color after all. But the deep red turtle pattern suited the blonde. The obi was blue as a contrast as well as a tribute to his own garments.

"You look presentable. Let's go. We shall attend to this mornings meeting after all."

"Oh wait. I just wanted to ask one thing…" He scratched his neck in a bashful manner. "Well, are all people here yokai?"

Sesshomaru inclined his head. "This is one of the four yokai palaces after all. Humans tend to fear or want to try to kill our kind. They are not particularly dangerous, but annoying. Only a miko could even contemplate harming us, but those tend to be rather rare. Still, humans come in greater numbers and noise, so we avoid any interaction if not necessary. One only gets a headache by doing so. We do have a couple of human landowners that swore us allegiance and tribute for protection though."

Naruto grumbled a little at the thought, that humans were not considered a threat to demons, but followed nonetheless, contemplating the fact that humans tended to hate demons. That was something he all too well understood after all. Then he blinked in surprise. "Hey, you have a tail, too!" His excitement was apparently easy to spark.

"Of course this Sesshomaru does. All young canine Daiyokai do. When one gets old enough, one will start wearing it as a pelt, so it won't be a hinderance in a fight."

Naruto hummed thoughtfully. "What if I get more tails?"

The young Lord blinked. That was actually a useful question. "Kitsune do get more tails as they gain more power. But they usually call upon them when needed to channel that power and dismiss them when not."

"So more tails mean more power?"

Sesshomaru shook his head. "No. That is only the case with Kitsune. Other yokai races have other indicators of power. But most commonly you should be able to feel their yoki." The blonde frowned in confusion, so he elaborated. "It is one type of aura one eludes. Yoki is specific to yokai and the amount of yoki should tell you a yokai's strength. Though more experienced yokai and nearly all Daiyokai tend to mask their yoki signature."

Surprised the Kitsune stared at him. He looked like he had had an enlightenment. "So basically it is like chakra. Can you also use it to leap very high, run up a wall and walk on water?"

Impressed was the wrong word. The Inu Daiyokai was positively floored. He had thought, it would take longer to explain the malleability of yoki to him. But it seemed his young companion had succeeded in surprising him once more. "Indeed", he near purred, "this Sesshomaru is currently working on walking on air." The look of awe on the other's face definitely stoke him the right way. "Now desist from doing anything stupid. Don't talk unless spoken to. We will enter the audience hall during session. Just be respectful and try, not to insult anyone, but also don't back down from a challenge. That would be considered weak."

The young heir calmly walked inside, Naruto hot on his heels. His father was leading today's audiences and listened calmly to a dispute between two land owners. Instead of taking the right hand place next to the lord, Sesshomaru roamed the line of petitioners, which were quick to make way, until he was first in line after the current dispute. It was uncouth to interrupt a discussion in this hall after all, no matter which lowly peasants were talking. Though those did tend to end quicker whenever a Daiyokai stood next in line.

Consequently his father beckoned him forward quite soon, his face unreadable. "Petitionier, what is it, you desire today at this court?"

"Mylord, this Sesshomaru, Heir to the West, seeks to add strength to our pack. This Sesshomaru will take in this pup as his own."

Surprised mutterings started all throughout the hall and the Inu no Taisho had to hold up his hand to reign in his subjects. "You are still a pup yourself. You wouldn't know how to raise one. Let alone one not of our kind."

Proudly he held his head higher and looked his father defiantly in his eyes. His father must have noticed his mother's crest. He couldn't not notice. And he would know what it would mean. His son was on warpath. "This Sesshomaru does not seek to raise this pup as his own pup. This Sesshomaru intends to take this pup as his little brother."

Shock and surprise. As well as wariness. If he hadn't studied his facial expressions for years, he wouldn't have noticed them rushing through his stoic features. He felt rather then saw Naruto wordlessly gaping at him, as he was busy not to miss anything on his father's face. "You would ask this Toga to take this pup as his own?" There was a certain amount of incrudelity behind the question and he had a hard time, not to smirk.

He nonchalantly regarded him. "It is not like you would have to do anything, Toga-sama. This Sesshomaru takes full responsibility for the pup. As a hunter of the pack it is this Sesshomaru's privilege and duty to provide for his own." Not to mention, his father having never before cared to take responsibility.

His father now frowned. He probably couldn't for the life of him figure out, what his son wished to accomplish with this petition. "You are aware, that this pup would never inherit anything?"

Sesshomaru nodded and a small smile laid on his lips. It made the lords and ladies all the more interested in the subtext challenge, that no one seemed to decipher yet. But they would soon. His smile widened and turned cold. "Indeed. This Sesshomaru is fully aware of the fact, that _neither ward, nor bastard, nor hanyou_ could ever inherit the West. It is merely this Sesshomaru's desire to add this pup to the pack and call him brother."

Golden eyes met their mirror images. None backed down. Minutes ran by and no one dared speak. He felt Naruto opening his mouth to say something, but he gripped his arm hard in warning and the Kitsune closed it again. Never once he took his eyes off. The silent match between lord and heir could have continued many more hours if Futoshi had not stepped forward and bowed deeply. "If I may submit a suggestion, Mylords." The Ino No Taisho nodded, but never took broke eye contact with his son. "My Lord Toga, dine with the pup, get to know him and decide at the next meeting, whether you wish to accept your son's petition."

After a couple of more moments had passed, he inclined his head. "Agreed. Pup, you will dine with this Toga tonight at dusk." He visibly hesitated, then added: "As well as this Toga's son."

Sesshomaru's jaw clenched. The fact alone, that he needed an invitation to dine with his father was ridiculous. Not to mention the reluctance with which it was given. Since he did not trust his voice, he merely inclined his head and purposefully strode out of the hall, Naruto hastily catching up to him, his jaw wide open. "I really don't wanna be the cause for you and your dad to fight", he blurted out as soon as they were outside.

The silver haired boy raised an eyebrow and looked at him incredulously. "You cannot be serious. I have not dined with him outside a feast for over a century. You would be the very last issue on a long - very long - list of issues standing between us."

Naruto stared at him. He waited patiently for the blond's mind to start working again. He couldn't decide, whether this was a source of constant entertainment or annoyance. Probably both.

"You-you talked normal! Just like I do!", he exclaimed completely shocked.

Suppressing a smirk, he answered: "This Sesshomaru does as he wishes. Your concerns were so ridiculous, they were not worth a proper answer. But we digress. We need to get you a proper wardrobe for the time being. And afterwards this Sesshomaru thought of giving you a tour through the palace." With a cry of enthusiasm Naruto dashed away only to come back right after, as he didn't know the way. The Inu sighed. Yes, this boy would cause him more than one headache. Why again did he think this a good idea?

—

"I could stay here for the rest of my life!"

Bemused the Heir to the West startet to pet one of the horses. "Are you sure? I believe Gin would reward me immensely, if I told her, she could find you here."

"You wouldn't dare!", exclaimed Naruto not far from despair. That damn woman was one of the few spider yokai living in the palace and had taken a particular liking to him because of his unusual coloring. She had called him 'exotic' and forced him to pose for her wearing the most ridiculous outfits. All the while Sesshomaru was standing in a shady corner, equally trying to get a glimpse for his own amusement as well as not to get caught by the spider yokai as well. It had taken him hours to get out of her clothing shop. On the upside of things though he was pretty certain he had a good chance at getting orange kimonos from that trice damned woman. She'd better comply otherwise his efforts had gone to waste and he would no longer be able to be hold accountable for his actions. Mainly pranking.

"While we are at the stables, this Sesshomaru would like to introduce you to someone. Come." He led the Kitsune to the back part of the stables and pulled him into the last box, which was a little bigger than the others. Inside there were two heads and one tail connected through a scaly body. "Their egg was a token of peace and friendship from the dragon yokai upon this Sesshomaru's birth. This is Ah and this is Un. They hatched ninety-six years ago."

Naruto curiously approached and let the one?two? creatures sniff his hand. Then lick him. "Eww!" He hastily withdrew his hand and jumped a couple of feet back, warily keeping his eyes on the pet dragon, that was about as tall as the boy.

In spite of himself Sesshomaru felt a small smile creep on his face. "They seem to like you. It is rare. Ever since they hatched they only permitted this Sesshomaru near them without a fuss." It seemed like they felt their masters approval of the Kitsune.

This made the yellow haired boy radiant like the sun. "Really? Awesome, dattebayo! They are so cool!" And then he was next to the two-headed dragon again, petting and cooing the creature like there was no tomorrow. And to Sesshomaru's great amusement as well as embarrassment the fierce and proud dragon was soon ice melting under the other's hands, purring and offering its belly like a common house cat.

"This Sesshomaru's father will try to make you doubt", he said suddenly, startling both, Kitsune and dragon. Blue, split-pupilled eyes shot up to him and the petting hands stayed. "As previously said, there are a lot of issues between this Sesshomaru and his father. This Sesshomaru does not know why, but Toga-same always seems to try to spoil everything. He will make you doubt this Sesshomaru."

For a little while Naruto just looked at him. Then he asked seriously: "Do you really wanna be my brother or did you just say that to make him angry?"

His lips twitched. "That is an apt observation indeed. This Sesshomaru said it in spite, to hurt his father. You should know that the Lord of the West entertains a prostitute and is expecting an illegitimate child. Even though his mate still lives, which is a disgrace in itself, and he knows that this Sesshomaru would disapprove. But despite all that, it does not make this Sesshomaru's desire for a genuine companion any less true."

He averted his gaze and contemplated, whether he should talk further. But once begun, he could not stop himself. Over a century of loneliness and not being able to trust anyone had taken a toll on him. If he had to endure this any longer, he wasn't sure he would recognize himself in the end. So the truth spilled out of him without any real choice. It was now or never confiding in anyone ever again. "Everyone you see in this castle is sworn to its Lord and will gladly sell out this Sesshomaru if it benefits them, to the Lord of the West or any other person, that would reward them. This Sesshomaru has never known someone who would truly take his side or even hold his confidence. This-" His voice faltered and he had to swallow heavily. Then he looked directly into the blue eyes. "I will take you, however you want. As a brother or simply a companion. It doesn't matter. Just don't betray me." _Not like I was betrayed before._ If anyone could do it, then it would be the one Fate had chosen for him.

He expected outrage in the other's gaze. Betrayal or the feeling of being exploited. But Naruto simply and easily grinned. "Alright." Sesshomaru blinked, unsure whether he had heard correctly. "I would never betray you, you know? That is just mean. I would never, _ever_ betray my precious people! People shouldn't do that _ever_!" His grin widened. "This is going to be so great! I will be the best brother ever, dattebayo!"

And then he hugged Sesshomaru. The latter seriously reconsidered their arrangement. Did brothers really hug each other? He didn't know any siblings that touchy. Then again the ones he knew were old and grumpy. But still, what was one supposed to _do_ when hugged?! As Naruto didn't seem intend on releasing him any time soon and he felt awkward, he tried to alleviate that feeling by hesitantly and clumsily patting the other's back. It did seem to be the appropriate response, because the Kitsune let him go and grinned at him. He had never seen a happier face. Unconsciously his lips tugged upwards as well, relief clearly visible in his golden eyes. Maybe he made the right choice in believing in Fate. Maybe Fate would guide him, so he would not get hurt again.

—

"Mylady!" Kimi looked up from her lavish divan to see her master of whispers approach. Inquisitively she crooked an eye brow. He bowed deeply. "Mylady, Sesshomaru of the West made a petition today."

 _That_ got her attention. After all it was not everyday that the boy swallowed his immense pride and lowered himself to actually _ask_ for something. "What was it then, he desired?"

Her servant gulped a little like every time, his mistress had that hungry, dangerous grin on her lips. It made him uncomfortable even after all those centuries in her service. "He asked his father, to allow him, to add a Kitsune pup about his age to the pack as his brother."

That certainly got her by surprise. She had known, that the small Inu had a sentimental side. But she had believed, that he had shed this weakness by now. Somehow she was severely disappointed. She had thought him better than this.

"Mylady, that is not all." Again she lifted her brow. Rarely she had to speak for herself. Her servants had learned to tend to her every whim without so much as a word from her. "He wore the crest of the crescent moon and never once backed down from his father's challenge to his claim."

Her ever present, playful smile widened. Well, it seemed the pup had finally grown a pair. And he was on warpath. That was something she could work with. Perhaps it was time, to once again direct the fate of the world.


	4. Chapter 4

Damn it. I hashed out a couple of details. Got more ideas. Adjusted my plans. Had another thought. Replaced the whole thing. Jup. My life sucks.

On the bright side, Kurama lives. Yay! You might wonder what I mean by that. Let's just say he wasn't in my original plot. But as he is my favorite Naruto character I couldn't bring myself to simply let him perish… so yeah. I created a whole new plot line instead. Intelligent, I know. Apparently I'm a masochist. Needed since chapter two until now to reconnect the dots but all should be smoothed out now. And to be perfectly honest, I like the new planned story way more than before.

So I created two new plot lines. Jup, TWO. From the one idea of letting Kurama live that I made up on the spot at 5am or something. So one is about Kurama and wherever the hell he ends up. The other… might be a slight shock. But! I have a perfectly good and reasonable explanation for it. Let's just say, contrary to what I've told you in the beginning, I will have a couple of sentences to spare about Konoha and about a main side character over there. (And all that from Fate's improvised side sentence that 'the pattern had already repaired itself'.)

Damn Kurama. That one part about him has sprung so many new ideas… and really, they are better than the ones I had before. I knew there was a reason, I liked him. All those possibilities… Did I mention he was my favorite character?

Btw. Sry this chapter is a bit short. But it had such a good ending, I couldn't bring myself to forcefully add something just to live up to the word count of the other chapters. The next one should be decently long again.

—

" _Monster! We don't want you! Stay away and never come back or we will hurt you much worse."_

 _The small boy crawled backwards, tears in his eyes. He didn't understand._ Why? _Why did everyone seem to hate him? It wasn't fair. He didn't do anything to deserve it, did he? He wanted to defend himself, say something, anything, but one of the other kids kicked him hard into his already injured stomach. It_ hurt _. It hurt so much, he wasn't sure, he would survive this. Then again, he always thought that when the older orphans beat him bloody._

 _But he did. He always did. Oh, Kami, why did he always live on? He was sick of it._

 _And apparently the other kids were finally sick of him, too. They left him for dead in a dark alley and all he could do was curl up and pretend, it didn't happen, that it didn't hurt. Pretend, that he didn't want to die. He never did anyway. Oh, he probably came close or at least felt like it. But the next day or the one after that at the latest, he was up and running again. Well, broken bones did take a little more time. But not that much more._

 _People thought him unnatural, a freak, a monster. He didn't understand. Then, last week, a boy had fallen off a tree and broken his arm. He still could not move it in the slightest. There had been a nurse visiting and she had told the boy, that he shouldn't move for the next couple of weeks, if he ever wanted it to heal properly. He himself was confused. Why would it take the other boy so long to heal, when he himself healed nearly overnight, even without a nurse? That was, when he finally understood a little, why people thought him a monster. He wasn't normal. He never was and never would be._

 _He would always be alone._

 _He wanted to die._

 _But the monster side of him never let him._

He woke with a strangled gasp. His heart - his _actual, physical heart_ \- was hammering wildly. Oh, Kami, how he had forgotten, what that felt like. But he didn't relish it. He couldn't concentrate on it. His thoughts still lingered on his dream. Those feelings. That brat.

He hated him, like he hated all those, that came before. Like he hated all humans. _Not all of them_ , a voice snidely whispered in the back of his head, but he ignored it. He hated humans. He hated the worlds. He hated Fate. He simply hated. And that was the end of it.

But it didn't make his uncontrolled thoughts, _those damned feelings_ , go away. Why did he feel them now anyways? He knew, what had happened. He had been there. Kami, he had _relished_ it. So why did it make him feel… _hurt_ now?

Growling he teared at his hair. Wanting to make the feelings _go away_. But they persisted. Furiously he roared and hit the floor next to him. It crumpled like crushed, dry leafs. _No!_ Snarling his eyes frantically searched the blackness surrounding him for something, anything, to distract him from _leafs_. He found nothing. His heart fluttered frantically. His pupils were dilated, one couldn't even see a trace of red in them. He was hyperventilating. He had to _stop._

Finally he forcefully calmed himself. It wouldn't do to lose consciousness over something so trivial. He had known, what would happen. Heck, he had waited for it to start. That still didn't mean, he liked it. Oh no, he would gladly skip this part of the price. He couldn't, though. He was stuck with those bloody memories, those bloody _feelings_. And he had to endure them, if he ever wanted to keep his freedom. That is, if he ever found a way out of this fucking non-dimension, that ran outside of time and space. He let his head fall into his clawed hands.

Boy, he was so fucked up.

—

Sesshomaru was regretting, ever having laid eyes on the sun-kissed Kitsune, and idly wondered, whether he had been a serial-killer of pups and a cannibal on top or worse in his last life to deserve this. But then again, he felt oddly warm in his chest. It was strange. He couldn't recall, ever feeling like this. Naruto was shouting for the life of him and insulting his father ever two seconds. He should be mortified by his manners. Well, he was. But he also felt… gratitude. Unending relief and appreciation, because someone _finally_ stood up for him. Was on his side on the cost of his own life. Though, he somewhat doubted, Naruto knew how dangerous it was to insult the Lord of the West at his own dinner table in his own palace surrounded by his loyal vassals. No matter how obvious that little fact was. But he got the feeling, that this disregard of obvious details was going to be a reoccurring circumstance with the blonde. Well, he meant well. If they died as a result, the Inu between them would die happily at least.

"You ignore your own son! Bastard, ya should take responsibility! He's family and family means precious people and precious people are meant to be protected! I don't care, who the hell, ya think you are, but that doesn't give ya the right to just abandon your kid and replace him! That is so not cool! And then you try to take away his new brother, too! Well, guess what? I'm staying by his side, whether ya like it or not, dattebayo! At least one of us has to protect his precious people."

"You're right", Toga hastily replied and cut off the kitsune's seemingly endless stream of words. By the gods, Sesshomaru would do his damned best, to never be at the receiving end of such a talk. "You are absolutely right. I should have never thought of depriving my son of your presence. First thing tomorrow, I will announce my acceptance to Sesshomaru's claim of you. You have my word, Naruto-san. I shall not stay in your way."

He hesitated, wind knocked out of his sail, since his goal was achieved, but still not completely satisfied. "Well, good." The blonde huffed and sat back into his seat, somewhat mollified. During the last hour, Sesshomaru hadn't even dared to voice a word. Even now, he could not talk. He was too baffled by the fact, that Naruto had managed to make the Great Dog General somewhat apologize and blatantly admit a fault of his. Not to mention, he had even forgotten to use the royal etiquette of speech. Even though his father was rather relaxed and talked like a commoner with his closest advisors -and apparently his lover -, he never dropped the royal speech in front of strangers. That in itself was an outstanding achievement to be acknowledged. Not to mention, that he knew his father and his expressions. The one he made now was not only shocked, but also full of new found respect. That wasn't easily accomplished either.

"Well… let's finish our meal", the Lord of the West awkwardly tried to make peace. Naruto nodded slightly pacified and continued to gobble down his food, no table manners whatsoever. Inwardly the young heir cringed. That, he really had do rectify. This luckily was a private dinner. If there had been anyone else, it would have been a huge scandal. After a couple of silent minutes, Toga tentatively asked: "Say, Naruto-san, what is that symbol you bear on your forehead? This Toga does not recognize it."

Naruto perked up, then his face darkened a little, before he forced a smile on his face. "That is the symbol of Konoha, my home village. It's a ninja village. Every shinobi gets a hitai-ate with it when they graduate from the academy."

Toga nodded slightly. "Then it is a mark of passage. To show the world, that you can take care of yourself and contribute to the society."

The blonde scratched his head. "Yeah, I guess. I mean, when you pass, you get into a team and you start doing paid missions. I thought, they would be awesome, but we ended up doing a bunch of really annoying chores. But I was really happy, when I finally got mine a couple of months back." His smile waned a little, but he struggled to keep it on. He mostly succeeded. He was practiced after all. Still, he fooled neither Inu demon at the table, so the topic was dropped.

Heavy silence reigned.

Then, against all spurning all reason, Naruto smiled a true and wide smile. "So, do you guys allow pranks in the castle?"

Yes, Sesshomaru was definitely regretting, ever having laid eyes on him.

—

"Thank you."

Sleepily, Naruto turned around in his fluffy and comfortable bed and looked up at Sesshomaru, who was standing in the doorway, a soft candle light in the background shadowing his features and hiding them from the world. Nonetheless, the usually thickheaded genin knew, what the other boy felt. He had felt it too. When the young heir admitted craving his presence, a loyal and steady one, he had felt like crying as well. For the first time someone had actually and genuinely wanted him. It was not that hard a deduction to make from there, that the other boy felt the same. Never before had he really believed in a higher power. Actually, he never really gave it a moment's thought. But he was willing to do so now, because it seemed, someone had finally heard both their prayers. And had brought the kindred souls together.

"Of course", he replied softly for once, "it's what brothers are for, right?"

"Hn." He didn't move or say anything else, but for Naruto it was enough. He had after all been in a class with Uchiha Sasuke for several years and then in a team. So he really didn't need a translation. He already knew, what it meant and it warmed his heart from inside out. He fell asleep with the reassuring presence of his brother watching over him.

 _He was bored. Unspeakably bored. One day blended into another. One year, dozens of years passed after another without him taking notice. Every once in a while there was a human or two, who thought of gaining more power by defeating or capturing him. As if he would let them tread him like a simple beast. Still, it was lonely and boring. Especially since the time of the humans worshiping him had long passed. Oh, they did leave food at the foot of the temple, so as to not anger him. But they feared him and never came any closer. He had no company, no new books, no distraction. He didn't even remember how much time had passed since the last of his priests had died in an attack._

 _Idly, he wondered what had happened to his siblings. Did they feel the same uselessness of life? Did they miss their family, their father, like he did? He was not sure. So much time had passed, there was no telling, what had become of them. Maybe unlike him, they had found some meaning in life. He wished, he could ask them himself._

 _Everything inside him, his very soul, demanded, he leave and seek them out. He_ craved _for them, as he did for the sage. But he did not. He could not. He had promised the old man, he would wait for the right time. To stay apart, until Fate brought them together to fulfill the prophecy. Even though he could not fathom how there could ever be anyone even as remotely good as he had been. There would never be a second sage. Still, a Kitsune never breaks a promise and he would not begin either. So he stayed and remained as time passed, the years ever changing. Sleeping most of the time. Because while sleeping, he could dream at least. There he could-_

 _He did not know, what it was, but he started from his slumber and instinctively crouched into a defensive position. Not a heartbeat later a shadow lunged itself at him with clearly malicious intend. Of course, a puny human could never really harm him, not nowadays at least, and he deflected each blow. Somewhat amused by the distraction, the intruder posed, he gathered just the tiniest amount of chakra and let it free. After all, he did not want to destroy his home. But the annoying human assailant dodged swiftly and continued the attack. Only to be blown back by one of his tails._

 _The human let a bomb fall and enveloped himself in smoke. His nose itched. He never liked to be unable to smell something. The intruder was becoming progressively troublesome. Better to end this swiftly before he became a nuisance. But before he could do something to that effect, he felt an enormous amount of chakra convoluting. Then the smoke cleared and gave way for a purple construct of pure chakra. His stomach twisted uncomfortably. He hadn't felt power like this since the two brats of his old man. Still, it wasn't nearly enough to be_ dangerous _. Only… unsettling. Yes, that was the word he was looking for. He was simply slightly perturbed._

 _Defending was becoming increasingly difficult, but nothing, he couldn't handle. Regardless, it was definitely strange to meet a human with power rivaling one of the brats. Were the humans not becoming weaker with each generation? Or was this finally the one, he had been waiting for? But then, why would he attack him? No, he concluded, if he was_ the one _, then they would not be fighting. This was something different. Something, he didn't know. And that was worrying. He didn't like not knowing. After all these centuries, there wasn't much, he did not know._

 _Suddenly, while he had been preoccupied, the man was directly in front of him. A cold shiver ran over him, as he looked him into the eyes. They were blood red with black markings. Then he knew no more._

 _He was in a strange place. For the first time in centuries, he was away from his temple and it frightened him. He did not know, what or where this place was, but he didn't like it. It was all red haze and no end in sight. He felt strangely oppressed, couldn't hold on to a single thought, couldn't even form one. He felt strangely empty of emotions like freshly fallen snow, untouched, undisturbed, cold. Images flickered by. Humans screaming, fighting, fleeing, dying. The taste of copper and iron in his mouth. Things crushed under his paws. Wounds ignored. Only destruction._

 _Then there was a new picture, nearly unnoticed. A red headed woman. Some signs. Words. A seal. Then power. Chakra that rammed into him with a force, he had never known before. It pulled at his very soul. He couldn't escape it. He could do nothing. Nothing at all. The hazy feeling of the eye technique faded away for a harsch reality._

 _For the first time in his life, he felt real pain. Agony._

 _He screamed. Begged. Cried._

 _No one heard._

When he woke, there were tear streaks on his cheeks. His body was convoluting in pain, physical and emotional alike. He couldn't fathom, how anyone could stand that kind of pain. Loss. Betrayal. Fear. Anger. Hatred. He shuddered and cried even harder.

Only after what felt like an eternity, he noticed warmth enveloping him. A pair of strong, lithe arms hugged him close to a familiar smelling chest, preventing him from doing himself harm. _Sesshomaru-nii_ , he thought. His new brother was there. He was not alone. Someone _cared_. He snuggled himself closer into the other boy's body and cried even harder.

No words were said. Nothing else was heard. Nothing moved. They simply sat there, arms around each other and hanging on for dear life.


	5. Chapter 5

Here it is. I know, the story is really still in it's baby shoes and thus action is rare.

I hope, you enjoy it anyway and leave a review if you have the time;)

—

" _Do you have any idea, what you have done?!"_

Fate calmly regarded her brother and didn't even twitch as his aura unfurled itself and started to loom over her. "Put that away, brother mine. No need for such theatrics."

The cloud of power condensed into a thick, oily mass, visible to a point, that even civilian humans would be able to see it. His face darkened and he threateningly stepped closer until she could nearly feel his breath on her skin. " _No need?!_ Dear sister mine, you _do_ realize, that you just changed the fates of not only two _life's_ but two _worlds?_ Sesshomaru was destined to help against and deliver the final blow against Naraku, so that he does not take over the world and the Shikon miko could finally get rid of that damned jewel that has been plaguing Edo since the beginning of time. And don't even get me started on Naruto! He is the bloody reincarnation of Asura. _Asura!_ You should never mess with the sage's sons. And he was his _final_ reincarnation! He was supposed to bring an end to the curse between brothers. To save his world from Kaguya, who is - guess what - the threat that has been looming over the Elemental Nations since their founding! _Two worlds!_ Fate, why don't you understand? You have doomed _two worlds_ to their respective apocalypses! _Are you out of your mind?!_ "

Towards the end, he had been shouting, nearly screeching really. Fate leaned back a bit, looking at him warily. "As I said. No need to panic." There was a definite twitch in his eye there. He looked ready to kneel over from agitation. So she slowly put a hand on his shoulder, as if she was afraid, he would shy away from her. "Calm, Justice. Think about it. All this suffering they would have otherwise endured. It was not right to expect this from them."

Just for a second he looked her straight into the eyes. Then his whole posture crumbled and he sighed in defeat, the sound edging on a groan. "But neither was condemning two worlds to the unknown when they could have had peace. There was no right or wrong in that decision. I just wished, you would at least ask before you potentially prevent the prevention of two apocalypses."

She smiled and kissed him lightly on the nose. "I know. You say that every time and in the end we usually work something out anyways. Just because I cannot weave their path anymore, doesn't mean, I am abandoning them. Just because my hands are tied, doesn't mean, you can't interfere. Granted, your reach will be restricted, but it is doable. I really believe they can do better than I weaved."

He shook his head in despair. "I don't know. You have never changed something of this magnitude before. This is _big_. Like world changing big. There will be repercussions. Order and Chaos will interfere now, that you can't anymore. And what will you do then? You know, they don't have a shred of mercy. You have made them fair game to anyone."

When silence was his only answer, he closed his eyes and hung his head. He hadn't expected his sorrows to be assuaged by her but thinking and living it were different. "Let's just hope, they can handle it. Order has just made her first move."

—

When he woke up, he had a godforsaken headache. What, by Kami, had he been doing to get it? As far as he remembered, he had never even touched the sake his sensei and his friends loved so much. That left a hit on the head as the only explanation. Still, he couldn't recall such an occurrence. Actually, he couldn't recall much at all.

A slight panic made his heart race a little, but he forced himself to stay calm and not to move. If he had indeed been hit on the head, he might still be surrounded by enemies. So he better not give any indices about his awakening, before he could access the situation. Sensei would be so proud of him, he thought wryly.

Now focused on his task, he sharpened his senses and took in his surroundings. He laid on a bed, unrestrained. So he might be amongst friends. Next, he registered a familiar smell. He was in a hospital. Then he heard the sound of unfamiliar people. There was near silent sniffing. And an old man's voice telling someone, that he couldn't believe it himself. He unconsciously frowned. Believe what?

"Ah, he is waking up", the old man said calmly with a note of anticipation.

His advantage gone, he finally opened his eyes, adjusting them as fast as possible. He looked around, his head still pounding. He was indeed in a hospital room by the looks of it. There was the old man. He wore the hokage's hat. But he wasn't the hokage, was he? Behind the man there stood two man wearing Konoha's hitai-ate, one having the features of a Nara, while the other resembled a Yamanaka. He looked at his left, where he had heard the sniffing from. For a moment, he mistook him for someone else. Then he saw minuscule differences. The man had the same shocking silver hair, but a hitai-ate, that covered one of his eyes. His face held slightly different features and was completely blank, devoid of emotion. Behind him was a complete stranger with a scarred face, who still wore the Konoha headband.

"Hello, my boy. Can you tell us your name and the last thing, you remember?"

His gaze snapped back to the old man, who looked somewhat familiar, still debating, whether to trust him or not. Then again, his memories were somewhat screwed, they wore Konoha symbols and he couldn't possibly have information worthy of such an elaborate scam. He figured, something must have happened while he was out cold. "My name is Namikaze Minato, genin of Konoha. Where is Jiraiya-sensei? And who are you? Where is Sandaime-sama?"

The fake or not hokage looked over his head towards the silver haired guy and the scarred face, looked back at him and took a deep breath. "Minato-san, it is important, that you tell me the last thing you remember. And maybe have Inoichi have a look at you. Then we will answer your questions. Alright?"

Reluctantly nodding, he replied hesitantly, while concentrating: "I don't remember much. We were just back from our first mission as a team in Wave country. My teammates were fooling around. Jiraiya-sensei invited us to some ramen." He shook his head. "Then nothing. I wake up here with a massive headache."

Burrowing his frown, the old man nodded gravely. "If you don't mind, I would like to have Yamanaka Inoichi have a look at your mind."

Seeing that he didn't exactly have much choice in the matter, he nodded tensely. Again, he reminded himself, that he didn't have any valuable information since he was just a genin. And he _did_ hear about a Yamanaka Inoichi before. He was the next in line to be clan head, if he remembered correctly. Though he couldn't remember his age. Still, he was good, really good. Minato nearly couldn't feel his presence in his mind. After a couple of minutes, the Yamanaka retreated and nodded sharply to the old man, who sighed and then looked at him - what? - sadly?

"Minato-san, I am the sandaime hokage. I know, it must be a shock, but listen to me closely. You seem to have moved in time. Or rather, you have been reanimated, since your corpse is gone." The boy blinked a couple of times, unsure, whether he had heard correctly. "I am sorry to say, that you have been dead for over twelve years now. Ironically you died at the age of twenty-four. It means, that from your perspective you are twenty-four years into the future."

That was the last thing, he heard, before he passed out cold again.

—

Waking up felt wonderful. It just took him a while to understand, why. Then he remembered last night and the nightmare. A smile crossed his lips as he gratefully looked next to him, where his brother laid. It seemed, he had stayed the whole night until he himself fell asleep. Narutos heart clenched. He never had anyone, that cared even remotely enough to comfort him, let alone to stay by his side.

Sesshomaru's eyelids fluttered. Golden eyes transfixed upon him immediately. "Are you well?"

That question alone nearly made him cry. "Yes", he whispered, "'t was just a nightmare." He shuddered a little and the Inu yokai drew him closer. He inhaled the now familiar scent and smiled blindingly. "Thank you, nii." His brother's gaze softened and spoke out loud, even if his voice didn't.

Then he sat up. "Come on, little brother. Let us get prepare for the day. This Sesshomaru is sure, Gin has your first batch of clothing ready."

Naruto spluttered. His mind couldn't work out, what he was more indignant about, the 'little' or this blatant usage of his fear of Gin. Then he finally settled for: "Little brother?! I am just as tall as you, dattebayo!"

The young heir lifted an eyebrow in bemusement. "Really? This Sesshomaru did not notice. Then again, you are well over a century younger, even if we are psychologically and physically about the same age."

The blonde huffed in annoyance, but couldn't really find an argument against that. Well, he could use his unique logic to point out, that he was more magnanimous, intelligent and stronger than the Inu, but something deep inside him secretly wanted to be the younger brother. After all, it was a big brothers duty, to care for the younger one, was it not? And he really wanted, no _craved for,_ such treatment, so he pretended to be sullen, while secretly enjoying it and silently following his brother outside without further complaint.

—

Sesshomaru had to admit, that he was slightly impressed, even though he already knew, what kind of wonders Gin could fabricate with enough time and silk. The Kitsune looked pretty good in his new kimono and seemed to take a certain amount of pride in his new attire. It suited him. He didn't mean the clothes, well that as well, but his attitude. Naruto had begun to bear a self-confidence not unlike his own, but sunnier in disposition.

"This Sesshomaru's normal days include educational lessons in the morning, training in the afternoon and recreational time in the evening. Social gatherings or duties are few and far between in this century. You should probably join this schedule."

Blue eyes lit up in anticipation. "Training? Cool! I wanna go train now. Can we? Can we, aniki? Please!"

The young heir had serious difficulties, to ignore the imploring, big eyes batting their lashes at him like the little puppy he was. Still, he had to remain stern or, he knew, they would never educationally progress. "Not now, Naruto-kun. It is morning. Thus, we must adhere to the schedule. We will assess your educational prowess first, before testing your physical one, alright?" The blonde pouted but nodded sullenly. Sesshomaru softened a little. "What is it, otouto?"

Blinking slightly, probably in light of his perceptiveness, he admitted: "I suck in classes and school and stuff." He hid his face in shame and drew his shoulders up close.

"Well, of course." His head snapped back up and stared at him, visibly hurt. "You said, you were twelve years of age. Even if you started as a toddler, there is no way, you could already know everything sufficiently. That is one of the reasons, human lives seem so miserable to this Sesshomaru. Their mortality really is not their fault, but it does not lessen the fact, that their lifespans are incredibly short. Now that you are Daiyokai, you have all the time you need, to perfect whatever skill you so require or desire. And you are also as of today officially a ward of the West. That means you will never have a lack of competent teachers. Furthermore, this Sesshomaru promises to help with anything else, you need."

Again, he was enveloped in an embrace. If this did go on, maybe he would get used to it in time. Now though, he still felt a little awkward. But the gratitude of his brother was all, that really mattered in the end.

Naruto, as it turned out, was a complete and utter imbecile. He was severely lacking in any area of knowledge, mannerisms and political as well as economical prudence. On a brighter note, they also worked out, that Naruto must have crossed over from another world, for he did not recognize any of the lands in addition to never having met another demon before. His little brother did seem conflicted at first, but finally settled for feeling relieved, that no hateful villager he knew would ever hurt him again, and for being simply happy, because he had a brother and a home now. It was baffling, how easily he could content himself.

Finally it was time for them to head out to the training area and Sesshomaru already braced himself for another walking disaster. After all, for all his strength of character, that the young heir really admired, Naruto had turned out to be below average in anything else. It didn't faze the Inu yokai. After all, those could be learned. Qualities like loyalty and kindness could not. And those were the ones, that really mattered to him.

"Alright, little brother. This is Kosei. He is this Sesshomaru's main advising fight instructor. Let us have a light spar first to let him asses your abilities."

Naruto grinningly agreed.

Not wanting to hurt his little brother, he waited for him to make the first move. The fox demon did not disappoint in Sesshomaru's assumption, that he had no patience, and attacked right away with a full frontal assault. Lazily he evaded and stoke at his kidney. Or at least attempted to. Seriously, he had thought, that this would be it. But Naruto surprised him in actually blocking the faster than human attack, spun around and replied with a punch of his own. The young heir was so surprised, that it nearly hit him. Then he smiled and actually fought his little brother. He did not go all out, but at least acknowledged his potential as a threat and put someserious effort in it.

While sparring, he observed the Kitsune and realized, that he in fact used yoki to support his muscles, which enabled him to fight on a level that should not be possible for mere humans. It also wasn't something, that he could have done instinctively. Harnessing and using yoki was a discipline that had to be learned the hard way. As such it was simply astounding, that Naruto, who had professed to having been human until recently, was indeed capable of such.

He narrowed his eyes in contemplation. If he was capable of doing this much, how far along was he actually in the usage of yoki? He backed off a little and concentrated his energy into its natural choice of weapon. Naruto cried out in surprise, but deftly jumped away from the light whip and parried it with a kunai, which he still possessed from his original world.

"Oi! I thought, we wouldn't use chakra!" Sesshomaru just raised a brow.

Naruto sulked a little, but then grinned foxishly. His hands met in a specific pose and he shouted: "Kage bushin no jutsu!"

Suddenly, there were a dozen Narutos. Sesshomaru blinked. Then the mass of Narutos was upon him and he was hard pressed to keep up. He noticed, that whenever he hit one of them strong enough, they would turn into smoke and evaporate. But they definitely had a body mass, so they were no mere illusions, like he had first assumed. The replicas also held a scent, made sound and emitted the same yoki aura. They were impossible to tell apart. Still he finally found the right one and pinned him down, breathing hard, heart pounding. There was a definite fright factor to being suddenly attacked by a dozen perfect copies of his sparring partner.

He stared at the boy beneath him, still in shock. "How did you do that?" Naruto grinned and began opening his mouth to reply, but suddenly reason caught up with him and he pressed a hand against it. Hastily he lowered his voice and whispered into his little brother's ear: "Nevermind. We will talk about his later, in private. Don't tell anyone, how you did this, do you understand? It is important." The fox demon stared up at him in surprise. But seeing the seriousness in his face, he understood somewhat and nodded.

Sesshomaru stood up perfectly in time with Kosei coming to a halt next to them. He bowed deeply. "Mylords, that was an outstanding performance. Young heir, you did not take him seriously in the beginning and that nearly cost you the fight, but overcame the surprise rather quickly. Young ward, you did better than I admittedly expected. I take it, you had prior lessons?" Naruto nodded proudly, but didn't say anything recalling his big brother's order. "Well, your hand-to-hand combat skills and reflexes are a nice basis to build upon. And I take, you know your way around a kunai. Do you have proficiency in any other kind of weapon?"

The genin scratched his neck and thought for a moment. "Not really. I can fight with a kunai and throw it. I can use some explosive tags with it. And I can somewhat throw senbon and shuriken. But I like kunai and bombs better. Other than that, I didn't really learn to use any other weapon."

The instructor nodded in understanding. "Ninja weapons. Toga-sama did mention that you come from a village, that specializes in its uses." Sesshomaru felt like a fool for not taking note of that himself. "If you would like, I would also teach you the proper handling of at least a katana and recommend a teacher for any other weapon, that interests you. I suggest the katana, because it is the most noble of weapons. After all, all young lords should possess a certain amount of skill with it, even if it isn't the best weapon for you."

Naruto's grin widened. "Like ANBU! Yeah, I would really like that. I would look so cool, dattebayo!" He seemed positively elated by the thought, though the other two males didn't exactly understand him. He didn't mind. His thoughts were already in the realm of dreams and imagination.

Kosei cleared his throat and proceeded: "You are rather light and have a flexible and acrobatic fighting style without lacking in strength, which is good. In light of that, it would be prudent to have you learn the usage of any lighter kind of weapon - and to increase your speed significantly. Using Senbon and shuriken we can solidify. But we could also add chains, sickles or both in a kusarigama. Or sai or tonfa. Maybe even a war fan, gunsen or tessen. It doesn't really matter." He became thoughtful. "We should probably determine your primary element first though. It could give you an edge with the weapon of your choice." He thought for a moment, apparently considering if he had forgotten anything. "Other than that, I would say, you should learn, how to use a bo, just in case your only weapon at hand is a stick or something you found. But honestly, in that case use your claws or run. It is a fairly old school custom, usually used for lesser yokai and not powerful daiyokai."

Naruto did look like he was a little overwhelmed, so Sesshomaru put a hand on his shoulder and looked at him encouragingly. "How about, we determine your element first and let you try out the other weapons another time?"

He did look a little relieved. Then he scrunched his nose in obvious confusion. "Wait. What element?"

After his performance earlier, Sesshomaru really had thought, he would not need explain it. But he really should have known better by now. "You can already use yoki." Naruto blinked uncomprehendingly. "The… chakra you mentioned." His face lit up in understanding. Seriously, he really had to give him lessons on masking his expressions. He was decidedly too easy to read. It was disturbing, really. Didn't he have any kind of self-preservation instinct? "After learning to control yoki, one usually determines one's natural choice of weapon and one's primary yoki affinity. For example." He recalled the whip into his hand. "This Sesshomaru's natural choice, when forming yoki into a weapon, is a whip made of light." He dismissed it and poured pure yoki into his hands. Green, steaming poison formed. "But when releasing yoki without a concrete form, it turns into poison. Thus poison is this Sesshomaru's primary yoki affinity. His element."

The fox demon slowly nodded in understanding. "That is so cool! Can I learn that, too?"

The instructor inclined his head. "It seems, our first lesson has been determined, young ward. I will first teach you to call upon your natural weapon and then how to access your primary affinity. How proficient are you in the use of yoki?"

He shrugged. "Err, I can flare it and use it to run really fast. And to walk up trees and walls. I also learned to walk on water. But I was never really good at balancing a kunai on my fingertips. Then there are my kage bushins. I used to be really bad at bushins until I learned that form. Oh, and I can kawarimi and henge."

Kosei nodded with a frown. "You can already change into your natural yokai form of a fox? That is fairly advanced considering your abilities."

Naruto looked at him as if he was crazy. "What? No. Why would I change into a fox, Kosei-sensei?"

Sesshomaru blinked and the instructor didn't really feel superior to his student in his confusion. "What did you mean by henge then?"

Instead of giving an answer, the blonde shouted: "Oiroke no jutsu!"

Sesshomaru was hard pressed, not to burrow his head into his hands. Though he really, _really_ wanted to. Kosei just commented dryly: "Well, he is a Kitsune indeed. No doubt about that."

—

Kurama really hated his new form. It reminded him way too much of a human, though rationally he knew, that this was a demon form. Still, he didn't like walking on two legs. Four were far more comfortable. So he thought about reverting to his normal form while looking for a way out of this plane of existence. Wherever the fuck this was. Seriously, he had walked for a day now without crossing anyone's path. Sure, he had found Fate the day before, but only because she wanted him to. He had the nagging suspicion, that no one else was interested. This didn't faze him. He was used to not being well-liked. But that didn't mean, he didn't need any help to get out of here. He didn't like this place at all.

"Oi you!" He blinked and looked around. However, he couldn't see anyone. Shrugging, he walked on. "Hey, I was talking to you! Yes you, bloody canine!"

Slightly offended by that pipsqueak-like voice, he deeply growled and halted again. "Who the fuck are you? Show yourself."

He blinked once. Then twice. Even after three times, he wasn't sure, his eyes weren't hoaxing him. There was a fluffy green bunny with ears as large as its own body dragging behind him in the dirt. It didn't even stand as tall as his human-like chest. In terms of intimidation he was ridiculously unqualified, even if you didn't take his huge, round, puppy-like eyes into account. It puffed its chest proudly and Kurama had a hard time, not laughing out loud. Only his dignity prevented him from that particular faux-pas. Still, he couldn't help himself and sneered slightly.

"I am one of the mightiest kami of this real and you will show me respect while trespassing upon my grounds!"

Kurama snorted. "Sure you are. Now listen here, pipsqueak. What is this place and how do I get out of here? It sucks."

The green bunny squealed in indignation and stretched out a fluffy paw in a supposedly threatening manner. He looked kind of cute in all the wrong ways of the word. "You… you… you harlot! Why, I never- Such disrespect! How dare you, speak like that to the almighty Fidelity? I will teach you some manners!"

Suddenly there was an oppressive aura and the fox demon involuntarily gulped. How the fuck was this green, fluffy bunny emanating just as much or maybe even more power than him before he was first sealed? He took a step back, even though he would have never admitted to such. Something was seriously wrong with this bunny.

Let's just say, that this wasn't his proudest day. He was the strongest of the bijuu. In his best days, he would have played with the thought of fighting all of them together to have a really challenging spar. But after having half of his chakra sealed away, then the fuck up with Naruto and the price, he really wasn't at his peak. Even so, he was still strong and proud with no shortage of experience and could probably fight off anything, that was thrown his way. Or so he thought at least. But being flattened by the butt of a fluffy green bunny taught him otherwise and put a serious dent to his pride.

Kurama would never again speak of it. Or look at a bunny the same way.


	6. Chapter 6

Here some more bonding and a quite long chapter at that. Never fear, we will come to more adventurous parts of the story yet. We are still laying the foundations. And Naruto better learn fast, because he has less time than they think, but pshhht! Don't tell them!

Oh and in my opinion the shadow clone technique is the most useful of all jutsus in the whole series. And I intend to completely take advantage of it. So much wasted potential in the series, just because Naruto is a little simple. Good thing that I have Sesshomaru to teach him the better ways of life:). Don't worry though. I don't intend to make them anime versions of deus ex machina. It's just that Naruto has over a century of yokai education to catch up on and this seems like the most eloquent solution.

Btw: poor Kurama. I have waaaay too much fun writing his parts! Seriously, I am usually torn between pity and outright laughter while writing his scenes.

 **Well, enjoy and leave reviews!**

—

"My, you are a wreck."

There was a tick in his jaw, as he turned around to meet and rebuke the rude woman. Only to hold and freeze as he felt her vast aura. It smelled of death and decay. How the fuck had he not noticed her before? Ah yes, sure. Because he was in the realm of everything and anything. Apparently just about anyone, he met, had the potential to crush him under their heel and make it look like an accident. And while he was many things, wild, proud and easily angered among them, he wasn't stupid. So he mustered up all the courtesy he still held, gritted his teeth and gave the lady of death a most polite nod, because she not only probably but most definitely had the potential to neutralize him. "If you don't mind, while I am not at perk condition, I don't think I am… a _wreck_."

The pale figure skeptically lifted a raven brow and looked him up and down. "Oh yes, you most certainly are", she told him lightly and uncaringly. She could have talked about the weather for all her care. "It is rare, that I meet an incomplete soul. In fact, I usually don't." She drew her brows together. "Actually, I don't think, I've ever met part of a soul."

He blinked. "What do you mean? Half my soul is dead, isn't it? So you as the lady of death should have met it."

For all her countenance, she looked at him, as if he was crazy. He couldn't exactly fault her for it, since he already suspected, that he wasn't perfectly sane. But still, he took slight offense at the sheer incredulity she radiated. "My, how your world must have fallen, if it can't even remember the basic principles of life and death. A soul moves into the world, lives, dies and leaves the world. Then repeats the process. _A_ soul. Not part of a soul, not even half a soul. How would you even _kill_ part of a soul? Ridiculous. Preposterous!" She shook her head at the mere thought.

Slowly processing, what she had said, he opened his mouth. Then closed it. Then opened it again. "You mean to tell me, that my other half is still alive?!"

She wrinkled her petite nose and looked at him, as if he was extraordinarily dumb. "Of course, you fool! Didn't I just say so? As long, as part of a soul still remains, the rest lingers."

"So… theoretically, if I had a part of a soul and wanted to make it whole again, but the other half supposedly died…"

Her endless eyes narrowed and she raised her chin proudly. Not that she could look down on him with her tiny body and all. Still, it felt like she was doing exactly that. "I am no information broker for insufferable fools, who can't even think for themselves!" She turned sharply to leave.

"Wait, how do I-" But she was already gone. "Shit. Bloody kami! Gives me that information and just leaves! Insufferable woman! Who does she think, she is?! Argh!" He hated this place and all its inhabitants. But at least now he knew somewhat, what to do. He had to get out of here - not that he hadn't tried already -, go back to Konoha and patch his soul up. As much as he hated that place. After all it was the last location, he had been whole. And it was where half of him had supposedly died. Or not, as he knew better now.

—

"Alright. This should be remote enough to be safe from spies." Naruto looked at his big brother wide eyed, who had relentlessly pulled him along, until they had reached a remote part of the castle, which usually wasn't used if it wasn't at full capacity. "As this Sesshomaru already said, you cannot trust anyone, especially with vital information. Now, what was that technique you used to multiplicate yourself. The illusions were solid, incredibly detailed and absolutely indistinguishable."

Pride. It was all over his little brother's face. Being able to do it obviously meant a lot to him. "Hehe, I know, they are awesome, right? At the academy we had to pass this test to make a bushin. But I couldn't make one and failed the exam. Then one of the teachers told me, I could still pass, if I did a secret and special mission. So I stole a super secret scroll from our hokage - I mean, from our village leader. Turns out, the teacher was an imposter and wanted the scroll for himself. But he hurt Iruka-sensei, so I used the technique on the scroll - the kage bushin - and beat him unconscious. Then Iruka-sensei said, that I passed the exam, because my kage bushin is super awesome! It is waaay better than normal bushins anyway."

Sesshomaru raised a brow. "This Sesshomaru assumes, normal bushins are simple illusions without sustenance?"

The fox demon knitted his brows. "Err, if you mean that they can't touch things, then yeah. Like I said my kage bushins are way better! They can touch things and fight. They can even make kage bushins themselves."

"This Sesshomaru noticed the even distribution of yoki between them. So they can actually use it. Remarkable. How connected are you? Do you share a mind with the copies or do they have one of their own?"

"Err…" The young heir inaudibly sighed. His little ward really needed to learn a lot. "Erm… I don't know. They all act exactly like me. I mean, I don't know what they are doing when they are running around, but I know it when they dissolve."

That gained him a sharp glance from golden eyes, clear wonder inside them. "You mean to say, that you gain all their memories as if you had been there yourself?" When the blond nodded, an actual smile formed on his lips. "Do _never ever_ tell this information to anyone. In fact, try to use this technique as seldom as possible. It will be our ultimate secret advantage." His eyes glinted and Naruto began to share his excitement. "If you teach me this technique, no one will ever know, whether we really are there - short of attacking us. Even better", the Kitsune leaned forwards, so to not miss anything, "we can learn anything faster than anyone else. We could have a couple of copies study, while we spar. Think about all the possibilities, little bother!"

 _That_ definitely got him excited. "You mean, no more morning classes?" Sesshomaru eyes shone from within. "Yes! I'm in! Come on, let's teach you, so we can spend all day tomorrow together doing whatever we want!"

—

 _It was a day like any other. The priests were bringing him new books to read, the villagers nearby offered a sacrifice for his benevolence and he himself slept, ate, talked and studied at his leisure._

" _Kami-sama." A smile lay on his lips. Niwa was a beautiful young priestess for human standards. She also had the tendency to not listen to him, whenever he gave her leave to use his name while claiming that she was too unworthy to speak his name out load. She was a very sweet young lady, always polite and kind. Her intelligence knew no bounds and her mind was as quick as it was creative. She amused him greatly and taught him many things. And last but not least, she was his favorite human ever since the sage._

" _What is it, Niwa-san? Have you already finished the scrolls your sensei gave you?"_

 _She ducked her head and smiled sheepishly. "Well… I wouldn't say that exactly. Um…" Her cheeks tinged in a lovely shade of pink. "I might have um… ignored those", she ended in a low whisper, while glancing around to make sure, no one heard. He snorted. That was so like her. Always eager to learn, but incredibly hard to motivate to read. She hastily waved her hands around. "Nevermind that. I have actually come to get you. There is a pair of petitioners waiting outside the temple for you."_

 _He nodded and jumped to his feet. It usually happened that way. Rarely were humans ever courageous enough to actually enter. So there was always a guard outside in case someone sought out his wisdom. Whatever wisdom he had to offer. He had taken the old man's words to heart and tried to learn everything there was about this world, so that when the time finally came to save it, he would do it wholeheartedly, just like the sage had told him. Still, he was so young and never ventured outside the temple grounds. There was so much that he did not know yet, did not live and experience. However, he would do his best for whoever sought him out. Sometimes he would even employ his priests to help the petitioner._

 _He looked back and saw, that Niwa was incredibly slow. So he traced back and tugged at her sleeve with his teeth. He had grown somewhat during the past couple of decades. He imagined still reaching human knee height and shuddered. At least with his back reaching most humans waists, he didn't feel as dwarfed by anything anymore. Mostly. "Come on", he grumbled at her with fabric between his teeth, which always made her laugh easily. His heart melted just a bit._

 _Outside, the two petitioners looked like brothers close in age and kneeled readily with bowed heads on his temple steps, lower than himself of his priests."How may I help you, young wanderers?"_

 _A little startled by the soft voice, the men looked up. He knew, they had expected something more deep and imposing, but he really didn't see the point in making his supplicants tremble in terror. If anything, it would make them even more nervous to speak and therefore take more of his time. Not that he overly minded. Each encounter with a new human gave him a welcome distraction and further education. A new experience._

 _The taller of the brothers looked first at him, then over his shoulder at his favorite little priestess. But something inside him suddenly recoiled. Something wasn't right here. The man didn't look awestruck or frightened, like anyone meeting him for the first time usually did. No, there was something else in his eyes, something-_

 _Pure instinct made him jump aside. He felt the air whipping apart where he had just stood and the ground beneath explode. Not believing his senses, he stared at Niwa and the residues of fire on her fist, which had impacted the earth so hard, that it shattered. But before he could overcome the fact, that Niwa - sweet, kind hearted Niwa - had just attacked him, the two men in front of him sprung into action, both of them creating huge amounts of water. Water and fire. While he was a creature of fire and wind. They obviously prepared to overwhelm him quickly to their advantage._

 _Still trying to wrap his head around his favorite priestess - his_ friend _\- attacking him,_ betraying _him, he swiftly avoided them all by a breath of air. Eyes wide, he looked around for help. Where was the guard? Or anyone else for that matter? Even if no one was around, at least the guard was honor bound to always stay at his post. What was he to do? He had read about fighting, but hadn't actually thought, he would have to defend himself anytime soon. Or ever. A foolish thought, he now realized. And now here he was being attacked by three humans at once. So he did something, he was used to. Reason._

" _Wait! Niwa, why are you doing this? What are doing for that matter? What are you trying to accomplish with this madness?"_

 _The woman sneered at him, no speck of the lovely girl he knew left in her eyes. "Shut up, demon! We are trying to rid the world of your despicable existence. You are nothing but an abomination, luring humans into a poisoning sense of peace with false promises and hopes." Again, he had to jump out of the way, aghast. But this time, he didn't make it. She punched into his ribs and broke quite a few of them, while he crumpled to the ground with a painful grunt, burns at his side. He looked up to the human, he had favored above everyone else but the sage, pure anguish in his eyes. She looked right back, her gaze as hard as steel, as she prepared another jutsu. He unconsciously trembled. "But we know, what you really are. Oh yes, we know, that you and the other demons are seeking to dominate our world and destroy it. But we won't let you!" A certain amount_

 _He growled half indignant, half in disbelief. "We do not plan any such thing! We are here, because of the sage, the one that gave you the power, you are currently wielding. We are his children! We_ protect _this world! Why would we ever want to destroy it?!"_

 _She scoffed, not believing him for a second. "Sure you are." She spat in front of his paws. "Do you really think me that foolish? I will not be that easily tricked by that innocent facade you show to the priests. I have been warned after all. Now prepare to die!"_

 _Their eyes never once left each other, as she hurled a storm of fire directly at him. He could do nothing but stare, the reality of the situation not quite catching up with him._

 _Suddenly he was flung aside. He looked at his savior, but froze, when he saw one of the brothers, that had attacked him earlier and now held a knife to his throat. The other man scowled furiously at the impostor priestess. "Niwa! We had our orders. We are to apprehend him, not kill him. I know, you want this monster to cease to exist. Believe me, I do just as much. But our master still needs him for something, before we can get rid of him!"_

 _Niwa sneered at the man and started an argument, while the one at his throat seemed slightly distracted by them. He knew right then, that it was his only chance to survive whatever ordeal this so called_ 'master' _had planned for him - or even the death by his deceivingly lovely human's hand._

 _He hastily gathered his chakra before his mouth and released it in full force. Black-reddish flames engulfed his assailant. The scream shook him to his bones, but he did not halt to look at the spectacle. Instead he threw himself at the pair, that had stopped arguing and looked at him in honest surprise, before rushing to defend themselves. But the man was too late. An instinct, he didn't realized, he possessed, had driven him to sink his teeth deep into the man's throat. A familiar coppery taste flooded his month mouth. But instead of provoking his appetite, it made his stomach clench strangely. The second assailant went down gargling._

 _Niwa had frozen on the spot, hands raised and poised to form seals. He looked at her flatly, face devoid of emotion. "I am not a monster." It was no more then a whisper. "I thought, you were my…" His voice gave out. His eyes stung._

 _She contorted her face in a combination of fury and desperation. "Yes you are! You killed them! They were my brothers! And you killed them, you monster!" With an anguished battle cry, she hauled a giant fire ball at him._

 _She was talking about robbing one of one's siblings. Yet, she had just tried the same. His own siblings would never forgive him, if he died right here and now. So he couldn't_ not _defend himself, he realized. A black-reddish flame with answered the pure red ones of his former priestess. And totally overwhelmed them._

 _The smell of burnt flesh grazed his sensitive nose, while he looked totally petrified at the remains of someone he had trusted, but had betrayed him. He had no other choice, but to kill her. The taste of blood still lingered on his tongue, but he couldn't have let the men take and kill him afterwards. He had to kill them. He shook. He had to kill them. He had taken lives, precious lives that his father had wanted him to preserve. But he had had no other choice. He had killed them. She had betrayed him from the beginning. And he had trusted her so easily._

 _He swore himself, he would never make that mistake again._

Naruto woke with a pained feeling in his chest. The betrayal burned him up from inside out and wrenched tears out of his eyes. Sesshomaru was suddenly awake next to him and looked him into the eyes. A thought suddenly crossed his mind and pulled him out of the nightmare. Had his brother felt similarly, when he had been betrayed as previously implied? The depth of hurt simply overwhelmed him. He decisively snuggled into the other boy and closed his eyes. He would never _ever_ let him feel that. He would rather die.

He felt his brother's arms enclose around him and knew, everything was well. As longs as he had his brother, he had nothing to fear. With a smile on his lips he fell asleep again.

—

Naruto froze in their spar and got a kick against his stomach, that sent him flying. Moaning a little, he picked himself from the ground and glared at his older brother. "So you use that 'this Sesshomaru' thing to distance yourself and to seem all lordy and stuff?"

Sesshomaru sighed inaudibly. They currently had half a dozen clones each teaching each other while the originals sparred. Mainly it was him teaching Naruto. But one pair was discussing the usage of chakra in Naruto's original world in comparison to the usage of yoki here. And one was giving them an alibi by sitting on an official castle instructor's lesson. He had just felt a clone dismissing itself, after Naruto's did so with a huff. They had been talking about etiquette, speech and posture at the royal court.

"You need to work on not freezing whenever you receive a memory. It makes you slow and the slow in a fight get hit and lose - thus die."

His little brother rolled his eyes. "Yeah, I know. But you can't trick me!", he said while pointing one finger accusingly at his aniki. "Don't change the subject. I am your brother and if this 'this' thingy is what you explained to me, you will not use it with me. You don't need to keep me at a distance." The final words were more of a whisper than actual talk.

The Inu looked into his deep, deep, blue eyes and gulped a little. Oh no, were that unshed tears he saw? Silently cursing, he rushed to the blondes side and patted him on the head. "You are indeed right, otouto. I should not use such cheep methods on you of all people. After all, you are peerlessly unique and my closest companion."

Nearly sniffling he looked up. "You mean that?" A characteristic 'hn' was his answer. The smile on his face was brilliant. It shone like a thousand suns and warmed Sesshomaru's heart until it melted. Seriously, the young fox demon had definitely too much power over him and didn't even notice. Which was a good thing, he supposed.

Still, he had his pride. So he poked his little brother and said: "Come, little brother. Since you so skillfully ended that class, we shall continue our studies in person."

"Whaaat?! Oh no, please no! I can make a new clone! Come on, aniki! We don't need to do it for real. I can give ya two or three clones instead. Yes! Think about all the things, they could learn. I am just one person. But the clones would be three! Please!"

Bemused he looked down at his brother, who was actually clinging to his side for the dear life of him, begging like there was no tomorrow. When he shook his head, it seemed like Naruto's world came crushing down. "I am sorry, otouto, but we decided that for now, we will use no more than half a dozen clones, so to not overload our minds or exhaust ourselves too much. I will take you up on that offer, once our minds have adjusted and are capable of handle more safely and we have established how many bushins we can keep up for this long. That means, you get to learn etiquette from this- from me personally." Only a pitiful moan was his answer.

—

"You never used chains before, did you?" A vague and unintelligible muttering answered his dry instructor's words. Sesshomaru and Kosei sighed simultaneously and continued to stare at the calamity that was tangled up in front of them with a certain amount of incredulity. Naruto had just managed to call upon his natural weapon, chains made of pure yoki. Then he had gone all crazy and played around with them until he had ended up as a gift wrapped up perfectly and unable to move.

"Alright. Cut off the yoki sustaining the chains." The kitsune fell ungratefully down to the ground, face first, with a yelp. His older brother resisted to cover his face with his hands, a familiar urge by now. The frightening thing was, with each time the urge was easier to ignore. It was becoming a habit. "Well, that's it for my training you in the usage of your natural weapon, young ward. I will get you an adequate instructor by tomorrow. For now, let us work on your primary affinity and your sword skills afterwards."

"Yeah! I wanna learn that!" A hyperactive ball of energy bounces towards them and looked at the instructor with big, blue, anticipatory eyes.

"Good. I need you to sit down with me and close your eyes." He continued to do just that. "Focus on your breathing. How the air rushes inside and out of you. Focus on your blood. How it rushes inside you, reaching every part of your body. Focus on the energy swirling around in you. How it moves in certain paths and pools in certain areas. Do you feel it?" An hour passed until Naruto finally nodded slightly. "Good. The largest pool should be at the center. I want you to take just a bit out of it and release it completely uninfluenced. You-"

He couldn't talk any further, because a massive block of wind hit him in the face and sent him flying. Which was a good thing. Because right after there was a wave of smoke and black-reddish flames coming his way. He barely had enough time to put enough distance between them and dodge out of the way.

"Hehe, that feeling was awesome, dattebayo!" Naruto grinned and opened his eyes. Only to be shocked by the devastation around him. The ground around him was charred and churned up. Panic settled in his gut he looked around frantically. "Aniki!"

"This Sesshomaru is fine." The Inu daiyokai had jumped up one of the castle walls and jumped down, completely unharmed. Naruto ran to him with inhuman speed and jumped him to hug the live out of him. He vaguely remembered something about decorum or something, but he didn't care. He was simply overwhelmed with relief, that his big brother was okay. The young heir ruffled his head lightly. "It is fine, otouto", he murmured quietly. Then he smiled at the boy in his arm and said a bit louder: "It seems like you primary affinity is wind. And your secondary affinities are illusions and fire, which are not surprising considering you are a Kitsune."

That certainly managed to get his attention. "I have three affinities? Awesome, dattebayo! Do you have others too, aniki?"

Sesshomaru nodded as the other boy finally let him free. "This Sesshomaru's secondary affinity is light. It is not as useful as other affinities though."

Naruto blinked and looked at the inu incredulously. "Not useful? That is sooo not true! I mean, ya can light the dark and form a whip with it. Maybe you can use it to burn or something. I mean, the sunlight burnt me once. It was really, really painful. And I bet it even helps ya with illusions. I mean, illusions are tricks of light or something, right? I think so at least. But I haven't really paid attention in class. So I might be wrong." He scrunched his nose in thought and started scratching the back of his neck.

For all the surprises he had already suffered by his new brother, Sesshomaru had never felt this stupid before. Or this arrogant. In his pride he had only seen the damage poison could inflict and never even considered light to be useful. He had never heard of any powerful attacks made of light and cast it aside in favor of more power. After having prided himself for his intelligence, he could not believe, he had been this stupid and short sighted. After only a day with shadow clones, he had already realized their sheer potential. Then, why had he never thought about the potential of light? True, it was a tool of trickery and not particularly honorable, but hadn't he been taught to use any means necessary to win a fight? It wasn't even only a tool of war. It was a tool of stealth. How many times had he had problems to get away from his guards? Or wanted to spy on his father's meetings? Could he use his light affinity to let it pass him and thus make him practically invisible? Suddenly a whole new bunch of ideas for the usage of light sprung into his head. He could not believe that he had discarded his secondary affinity that easily.

"Nii-san?"

He blinked a bit and focused on the here and now again. On his brilliant, clever little brother. He smiled and ruffed his hair. "Thank you, otouto. You are absolutely right." The answering smile was the trademark one, the one he had come to love. "It seems, both of us need to train some more."

—

Two similar but completely unlike brothers lounged in the garden under a clear sky and beautiful stars. When Sesshomaru had wanted the servants to bring them a pair of chairs, Naruto hat laughed and pulled him with his onto the grass. The stains would probably never get out of his formerly pristine white kimono. But then again, he was pretty comfortable lying lazily on the soft grass together with his little brother, so he really didn't mind that much about his clothing. Ordering the servants to leave them alone, they started to trade stories.

Naruto told him about his life at the orphanage first, then their rejection and the following life on the streets until he managed to get his orphan allowance personally. He still had had troubles to find a place to stay since no one wanted the demon child anywhere near them. Finally he had found a small room for rent in the red-light distract, whose owner, living somewhere else entirely, didn't give shit, who it was, that lived there, as long as money came in. He told his brother about the villagers hate, which he didn't understand, and his dream of becoming hokage, so that they would finally acknowledge his existence. But he also talked about darker days, his doubts, his fears, that the villagers were right, that he was a monster and didn't deserve to live. He admitted having been at the point, where even he did not want to live anymore, repeatedly.

He recounted his lighter years at the academy, his inadequacies, their scorn and ridicule and his need to proof them wrong. He laughed at the pranks he got into the habit to play, so that they would be forced to acknowledge his existence. He fondly remembered Iruka-sensei and his support after the exam, when Naruto finally knew, why everyone hated him. He cursed his new team and the D-ranked missions. He bragged about the actually A-ranked mission gone wrong. Then his voice became quieter, subdued. He told him about his happiness and then Sakura's words, his parents deaths, about the demon inside him that broke out without control, about his fears and finally the acceptance that the world would probably be safer, better off, without him.

Sesshomaru listened, never interrupting. Just holding onto his little brother's hand and supporting him, when needed. He never judged, never criticized. He was simply there for him. But when Naruto talked about killing himself right before arriving here, his heart clenched painfully. Before he even realized, he had rolled to the side and pressed the other boy to his chest. For the first time in his life he consciously hugged someone and it didn't feel enough. No matter how hard he squeezed his little brother, he was still afraid, he would simply vanish.

"Never. Please, never try to part from this world again. Do not ever dare leave me. Even if we fight or get parted, promise me, you will stay alive. Promise me, you won't die."

Naruto froze in his brother's arms. Once again he felt his heart break at the thought, that someone actually wanted him. Not even only for themselves, but also to stay alive. To acknowledge his existence and deeming him worthy of life. He began to cry. Then he cautiously returned the hug and nodded. "Yes. I promise. I promise, aniki."

Sesshomaru sighed in relief, but did not let go. He held on, buried his nose into blond hair and memorized his brother's unique scent of rainy woods, clear sky and a note that he could not identify, yet undeniably liked. They laid there without moving for what felt like hours, then the inu yokai began to speak.

"My mother used to live in this castle together with my father and I. I can barely remember it, I was so young, but I vaguely remember being happy. Then something happened and my mother left to never return. When they told me, I had to choose, where to stay, I chose to remain here. I never found out what transpired exactly, but ever since then my father began to distance himself from me. Nothing I did was good enough. He spent less and less time with me. If he could, he never chose to talk to me but my retainers, instructors or servants instead. Whenever we met, there were always other people around. I tried to be a good son, to be finally acknowledged by my father, but he never once looked at me with anything even remotely related to pride or affection or any other positive emotion. It is always wariness and careful calculation. I don't know, why he keeps looking at me like that, if he even looks at me at all. So yes, I know remotely how you felt in that village. I feel it every time, he looks at me. I would like to know, what crimes I have committed in his eyes to warrant such a treatment, but he never answers, when I ask. And believe me, I did. I finally gave up on it. I finally accepted, that I will never have a real family in him."

Naruto hugged him closer and gave him a peck on his cheek. "You don't need such a bastard. I am your family and I will never stop being your brother."

The inu nodded into the blond hair and sighed. "I know and I am grateful. Thank you, otouto."


	7. Chapter 7

First of all, I'm sorry for letting you wait so long without prior warning. I was on vacation and forgot to upload the next chapter in time. But on the upside, my vacation was good for my soul. And what's good for my soul is good for writing my story:).

Alright, this chapter has a lot of recounting in it, but Naruto as well as I needed this to work through this mess emotionally (and not or less logically). A couple of sentences towards the end of the dream are somewhat but not perfectly copied from the original Naruto series and I don't own them etc. etc.

The pace picks up a little in the next chapter and really from chapter 9 for all that wanted to know.

I intend to write 3 defined arcs. One about the time between now and Inuyashas birth / Toga's death. A small interlude with a couple of time skips that explain what the brothers do with those 200 years. One arc about the search for the shards and fight against Naraku. A smaller interlude for finishing up in that world (currently it is just a chapter in my head). And finally one arc about the brothers returning to Naruto's world and of course Akatsuki.

At the moment I really crave to write about the war and Toga's death and Akatsuki. I already wrote a couple of scenes in advance because I couldn't wait.

Aaand as long as i am capable, I'd like to start to personally address reviews.

Thank you guys, I really appreciate the feedback!

 **Guest:** I am really sorry, but I would really like to write about the circumstances leading to Toga's death. But as I am rather hell bent on writing about the actual days around it, I will skim a little more until then. Starting next chapter. About the time difference: don't worry. I have two explanations in mind, but can't yet decide which to use. One of which is actually the one you suggested:).

 **xhope14x:** Thanks. As I said above, the pace will pick up soon. I myself started to worry about it and it's good to hear it from someone else as well. Chapter length? Huh. Gotta think about that. I never published a fanfiction before and would like to keep up constant updates. I am simply not sure, whether I am able to write more within a week. I suppose I could upload every two weeks, but… well that isn't really a solution either. We will see. This chapter is longer then those before. Maybe it will work by constantly increasing the word count…? But as I said, I will upload as I am capable. Though your preference is noted;).

 **mrenteria99:** errrr… poor Kurama! :D But I can certainly see your point. And I was planning to reduce the amount of Kurama scenes anyway because his story line is way shorter than the boys' and I really wanted to focus on the boys from the start. Including Kurama was a heat of the moment decision. Guess I kinda got a lil lost on the way. So you'll get what you want. Simply bear with the occasional scene that will pop up because I really do enjoy writing him. But about changing POV from boy to boy… I was thinking about taking a step back and distance the point of writing, so I could rather address both of them and their feelings at more or less the same time. Well, I hope, you and everyone else enjoy this chapter as well:). (Even though it has a lot of Kurama. As I said, Kurama will appear less often. That includes the dreams. I got the important ones out of the way for Naruto's development after this chapter.)

Well after a long monologue: enjoy!

—oOo—

 _He was tied to a stone with several bolts and chains holding him in place. It hurt just as much as the first day he was inside the damn woman. But today something was different. Ah, yes the birth of her child. She had been expecting, hadn't she? And he had been feeling the second life sharing living space and energy inside Kushina with him for a while now. It seemed, the day of birth was finally upon them. He felt something in his host break and fluid running down her legs._

 _Suddenly he could breath a little easier. He immediately understood, what was happening. The seal was weakening due to the childbirth. Without any conscious thought he was fighting with renewed eagerness against his restrains. Maybe after all these years he could finally be free again. He would like to see the stars. He had already forgotten what wind felt and rain smelled like. Sure, he had been experiencing these things through his hosts, but it was entirely different to feeling a breeze caress your actual fur or feeling your paws pounding into wet earth, when you run and simply enjoy the movement. His soul_ yearned _for this kind of feelings, of_ freedom _. He would not let anything stand in his way towards freedom._

 _Then he felt like running against a wall face first. Growling he focused on the outside world and saw Minato, the yondaime hokage, standing next to his wife, hands on the seal on her pregnant stomach. Frustrated he tried again, to get out, but the blonde gritted his teeth and stood his ground. Howling and growling he tried again and again, never succeeding. Then there was the wailing of a baby and he felt like crying himself. The chance for a escape was gone. He already felt the seal regaining in strength._

 _All of a sudden the idyllic picture of a family was disturbed by a commotion. Half interested, half still sulking because of his earlier failure, he turned his senses towards outside again. A one-eyed, masked, black clad figure held the baby, which somehow bore whisker marks of all strange things, hostage and demanded his vessel. Then they were in motion and fighting and everything went up in flames._

 _The next thing he knew, the masked figure had kidnapped his vessel and messed up the seal. Then he saw the_ bloody sharingan _again and he knew, what would follow. He frantically drove his claws into the alter, he was pinned upon, and searched for a way out. There was none. He would rather be pinned down in here under constant pain, than ever reliving the loss of control of all his senses and his body again. But he could not look away. The bloody eye practically overwhelmed the seal and tore him out. Then he relived his worst nightmare._

 _The world turned into red haze and he no longer could form any thoughts. Fragments of his senses reached him inconstantly. It was the same as before. Humans screaming, fighting, fleeing, dying. The taste of copper and iron in his mouth. Things crushed under his paws. Complete destruction._

 _Then suddenly, his head was clear again and he regained full control over his body. Something must have happened to the one controlling him. He roared in the sheer happiness, that he_ could _. Then he felt a little hurt and focused on the situation at hand. He could relish his regained freedom afterwards. First he had to assess the situation. From what he understood, he had been flattening the hidden village of the leaf, Konohagakure, and killing its inhabitants._ Again. _One would think, the damned Uchiha would find something else to let their frustrations out on._

 _Whatever. The point was that he faced an entire village of scared and/or revengeful humans. Some of which could actually hurt him. And aside from any bloody Uchiha with their fucking sharingan and the bitch Mito, who was already dead, he bore no specific hatred for any of them. Well, he guessed, he wouldn't cry over the deaths of the yondaime and his wife for keeping him imprisoned, but then again they didn't know any better. So he reasoned, that having them as casualties would be acceptable, but going after them in cold blood while facing an entire shinobi village with some knowledge of sealing was suicide. Better to get away, while he still could. Maybe he could even get that Uchiha bastard, that tried the sharingan on him. If only he knew, where exactly that sorry excuse of a human being was hiding himself._

 _Then all his carefully thought through plans went up in flames, as the shinobi initiated another chain of attack on him. He defended himself against it and opened his mouth to tell them, that it hadn't been him that had attacked the village, that he had been controlled and couldn't care less about their miserable lives and only wanted to live in peace away from them. However, no word passed his lips, because a giant bloody_ toad _sat itself on him and drove him into the ground. He growlingly tried to get up again, but was suddenly transported through a space jutsu._

 _There was the yondaime hokage, his whisker-marked son in his arms and red-haired wife at his side. Yet again he opened his mouth to speak, to bloody_ reason _with them, but before he could even utter a syllable, golden chains made out of pure chakra restricted him to the ground and wound themselves around his throat, effectively throttling him and thus preventing him from speach. Bloody Uzumaki._

" _I am going to draw the Kyuubi with me to my death", she then suddenly said. He was speechless. What the fuck was she thinking? Dying and trying to take him with her? He bloody well would prevent that insane plan. Again he tried to free himself, but the chains didn't budge one bit._

" _Kushina, there is no need for you to die with the Kyuubi. I will use the Reaper Death Seal to seal half of the Kyuubi inside me forever instead." A cold shudder ran across his spine, as he listened to the couple's conversation. He didn't know, what alternative would be worse. Death or being torn apart? Unconsciously he began to tremble. His whole body shook with fear. "As for the other half… I will seal it inside Naruto with the Eight Signed Seal. He will become a jinchuuriki. That masked man, who attacked you today is a harbinger of disaster. And the one who will stop him is this child." He wanted to growl, but not a sound came out of his constricted and throttled throat. As if he needed that child to kill that bastard sharingan user. He would do it himself, if he ever got free - which, he had to admit, was looking rather unlikely at this point._

 _Then the bastard of a hokage started the hand signs for the first seal. A shinigami formed itself behind him, ready to do as his master commanded and take his soul in return. "I am not doing this just for you. I'm doing this for Naruto." Then the shinigami stroke the blonde first and then him. "Seal!" He felt himself being torn apart. It was pure agony as his very soul was torn into two pieces. He felt like crying, like shouting his pain out to the world to hear, but those damned chains still didn't allow him even that satisfaction._

" _Alright. Next is the Eight Signed Seal. I will seal the Kyuubi inside Naruto." And somehow the bastard, who was in the process of being devoured by a shinigami, still had the energy to talk and walk around, the baby in his arms. He laid the brat down._

 _Suddenly, he felt the chains loosen. It seemed, Kushina's strength was diminishing. Still wailing in agony, he saw his only chance to escape. They couldn't seal him, if there was no vessel. Somewhere inside he felt something break at the thought of murdering an innocent kit. But he couldn't do this again, being chained down and painfully staked for years with no end in sight but the end of his host's life. Then they would choose yet another miserable soul, to seal him in, and the process would repeat itself until he went mad and wouldn't care any longer. Who knew, when the next opportunity for escape would come along, if it ever would?_

 _Shutting down any remote semblance of moral, he had still left, he stoke down his claws with the clear intent to kill the kit, when in a flash there were two bodies shielding it. Inwardly sighing he felt relieved. The kit would come to no harm and the humans trying to rob him of his freedom - again - would die. He could not have hoped for a better outcome._

 _As if to mock him, bloody Namikaze Minato performed a summoning jutsu and gave the toad the key to the sealing formula. "Eight Signed Seal." With that all his hope was lost. He felt the now familiar pull of a seal, that tugged at his soul until everything went black._

 _He knew, when he woke up, it would be in his newest prison._

Naruto woke up with a start and more than one shocking realization. Before he could even begin to process the sheer magnitude of revelations, he started to cry hard. Why? Because the Kyuubi could not do so and he had felt everything, he did. He deserved someone to cry for him and his fate. After all, nothing had been his fault. He had been the victim, always the victim.

His brother embraced him and hugged him close. He cried even harder. Who did the Kyuubi have? He had been alone all the time. He remembered the other tailed beasts, his siblings, and the sage, their father. He hadn't seen them in centuries, had suffered through pain and agony, imprisonment and abuse all alone. Completely and utterly alone. With no end in sight.

"Naruto. Otouto. Calm down. It was just a dream, a nightmare."

That elicited a new wail and the fox demon shook his head. "No!", he cried desperately, "No, it wasn't a dream! I didn't understand at first, but now I do. The dreams I have, they aren't nightmares. They are memories! Memories of the Kyuubi, that was sealed inside me!"

Sesshomaru sharply inhaled, but didn't stop caressing his back in an attempt to calm him down. "What made you come to that conclusion?"

"I saw through his eyes. I always live these memories from his point of view. Until now, I didn't understand the situations, he was in. But this memory was about the attack on Konoha on the day of my birth." He shook. "I saw my parents with me in their arms. They talked about sealing the Kyuubi inside me, half of it. And they sealed half of it inside my father. And my mom was his vessel before me. There was this man that-"

He shuddered again and his big brother stroke his hair. "Shh. Calm down. Let us get your emotions under control first. Then you can tell me everything and we will work this out together, alright, otouto?"

Naruto shakily nodded while Sesshomaru already pulled on a rope, that rang a bell in his servant's quarters. When one of them promptly appeared, he was still holding the trembling mess that was his little brother. "This Sesshomaru requires some calming, herbal tea, a glass of warm goat milk and an additional blanket." All of which the servant swiftly supplied.

Now having the other boy tugged into an extra blanket and sipping on his milk, he said: "Now, tell me about your dreams, otouto."

"The first one was kind of nice at first. I was sitting together with my siblings - the Kyuubi's, I mean - and a human, they called father. He was sending them away to live in separate temples with priests looking after them. Then I - the Kyuubi - became really sad, because he thought, it was the last time, he would see his father. I think, this memory is the earliest so far. As far as i can tell, the memories weren't in any kind of order.

In the second dream I had he was sitting all alone in an ancient temple. Everyone else had been dead for a really long time by then. Then there was this black haired man suddenly attacking him and purple chakra to distract him. And then the man was in front of him and looked him in the eyes. But his were so strange. They were red with a black pattern inside. Then the world faded and everything was hazy and red. Some fragments still made their way through. I think, the man was using the Kyuubi to attack Konoha. And then there was that redheaded woman, Mito. She sealed him inside her and-" He sobbed again. "It was _so painful_. It _hurt so much._ Aniki, why did they have to hurt him? It wasn't his fault! He was being controlled. It wasn't his fault…"

Clinging to Sesshomaru, he needed a couple of minutes to calm down. His big brother didn't say anything, well aware, that Naruto needed to get this out in one go or he would never finish. Then the kitsune recounted the third memory with a hoarse voice: "The next dream was in that temple again. He had a favorite priestess, so I think it happened before the last one. But she betrayed him. She worked with other men and tried to kidnap him. He defended himself. He must have been really young and small, because I remember them being as tall as myself - I mean, him. And the Kyuubi later was towering over Konoha. I-", he swallowed, "he had to kill them to protect himself. They nearly succeeded and overwhelmed him. There was no other way, so I- he killed them. He killed them."

Swallowing his argument, that it had been in self defense, he took the empty glass from his brother's shaking hands and tugged him a little closer, to which he responded by clinging harder. Freeing one hand, he reached out for a cup of steaming tea and swallowed a bit himself. Just seeing his little brother this shaken troubled him deeply. He was supposed to protect him. How, by all kami in existence, could he protect him against memories, that came to him through his dreams?

"Tonight I dreamed about being sealed inside Kushina, my mother." The inu jolted out of his contemplations and forced himself to listen attentively. "She was giving birth to me and the seal was weakening, so my dad stabilized it until I was born." He raised a hand to touch one of his marked cheeks. "I was born with whisker marks. I haven't ever seen those on anyone else. And they called the baby Naruto. It couldn't've been anyone else than me, right?" For the first time since he began talking he looked up to meet Sesshomaru's eyes, who nodded in assurance. Honestly, he shared his opinion in that conclusion. But for Naruto, a nod was all, he needed.

"Then there was this man. He had a mask with only one eye hole and a black cloak. He threatened me to get to my mom." Sesshomaru's grip became steel. Whoever that man was, he would pay for touching his little brother. But Naruto didn't notice anything and went on: "My dad rescued me but everything went up in flames. The man kidnapped my mom and broke the seal. He used the same red and black eye, that the guy from my second dream used to control the Kyuubi. He called the eye 'sharingan' and the man an 'Uchiha'." Uchiha. He supposed it was a family name. It sounded like the eye thing was a family trait. If he ever got to Naruto's world, then he would terminate every last one of them and feed them to the dogs.

"Anyway, he pulled out the Kyuubi and everything went red and hazy again. The next thing, I know, I - err, the Kyuubi - was in a half-destroyed Konoha with a lot of dead people." A shudder. "He was still trying to work out what happened and to orient himself, then the villagers continued attacking. I suppose, they wanted to defend the village, but before the Kyuubi could say anything, there was this huge toad and then he was teleported away." Well, the story seemed to become somewhat screwed up, but he wasn't about to interrupt his little brother right now, only to point out the obvious.

"The Kyuubi was in a clearing and my mom and my dad with me in his arms were there, too. Oh! My mom could make chains out of chakra just like me!" At least this thought somewhat cheered him up, despite the horrid tale. "She was so cool, dattebayo! She could hold down the Kyuubi all by herself, even though she didn't look so good at the time." He grimaced a little and a hand unconsciously fingered his throat. "But she also throttled him, so he couldn't explain, that the destruction wasn't his fault. First, she wanted to kill him along with herself. And then my dad started to talk about seals."

Naruto scrunched up his nose in an attempt to remember the exact details, knowing that his big brother would otherwise grill him for them later. "He used a 'Death Reaper Seal' on himself and ripped the Kyuubi's soul and chakra in two, to seal one half inside himself. There was this shinigami that helped him do it. But the Kyuubi thought, it would cost my dad his soul. Then he wanted to seal the rest of him inside… me."

The kitsune bit his lip pensively. "He talked about that man in the mask, the one that controlled the Kyuubi. He said, that the child - that _I_ \- would be the one who would stop him using the Kyuubi's power. But the Kyuubi didn't want to be sealed again and planned to kill the man himself, so he-"

His voice faltered and he sank himself deeper into his brother. He accepted the mug of tea and sipped a little. Soothing warmth ran down his throat and loosened the constricted feeling a bit until he was able to talk again.

"He tied to kill _me_." Sesshomaru froze up and his mind supplied a vivid image of a kitsune tall enough to tower over a village attacking a human baby that was his little brother. It was not a pretty picture. It made his blood boil and run cold for revenge. "So they couldn't seal me", Naruto explained, but Sesshomaru was still thinking mayhem and murder, "he really didn't wanna hurt me. He called me an innocent kit, but he definitely didn't wanna get sealed and endure years of torture again." It still didn't lessen the crime in his eyes. "But mom and dad threw themselves in front of me." A sad smile laid on his little brother's lips and the inu was floored by his ability to see something positive in anything he recounted. "They protected me and got hit instead. The Kyuubi thought, he would finally be free again, but before my dad died, he finished the seal. He called it the 'Eight Signed Seal' and gave its key or something to a summoned toad. Afterwards the Kyuubi blacked out while being pulled inside me."

For a long time, neither said a word. Both shaken and in turmoil over the tale. Then Naruto said with total conviction in his voice: "I want to help him."

"What?" Sesshomaru nearly screeched. He himself hadn't even known, he was capable of such. "That demon tried to _kill you_! Why, I beg of you, are you planing to _help_ the one that nearly _killed you_? Are you out of your mind?!"

He knew, he was in deep trouble, when his little brother set his jaw in a mulish gesture. "It wasn't his fault. He simply tried to defend himself and be free after years of being tortured, abused and imprisoned." That didn't seem like a good enough argument for child murder and he was going to point that out, when Naruto softly added: "He was the same as me. I had no one and was all alone. People hated and hurt me. But at least I could go wherever I wanted. He couldn't. He was in a prison for something he did not do. He was being controlled twice." He shuddered. "And that was even worse than being sealed. He didn't deserve any of it."

Calmingly taking a couple of breaths, Sesshomaru saw the logic in that argument at least. It didn't lessen his repulsion for trying to murder his baby brother, but at least he could concede the point. Still… "How would you even help him?" Distraught blue eyes met his in confusion. "You don't know, if he is still alive. You said yourself, last you knew, he was sealed inside you. And when you came into this world, he wasn't there anymore. Rather, he fused with you and made you daiyokai. It is entirely possible, that he doesn't exist anymore."

Scrunching his nose at the thought, Naruto vehemently shook his head. "I refuse, to believe that. I refuse to believe, that he gave his life to make me a demon. It could be, that whatever transported me here left him behind in Konoha. Maybe he got my real human body and this one is new. Or maybe he got out of the seal when I came here. Or something else. I _refuse_ to believe, that he died for me!"

Sesshomaru sighed. He knew a lost cause, when he saw one. And this was not a fight, he would win. "Very well. Maybe he is still alive. But what then? Are you going to somehow find a way back to the world, that hated you, and leave me behind?" Someway he kept it together and his voice even, despite wanting to cry at the mere thought. Betrayal stung deeply.

Naruto looked at him in pure and unprecedented shock. "What? Of course not! You are my brother and I promised you, to be there for you. And I never _ever_ break my promises! I will take you with me. The Kyuubi deserves that at least someone cares about him. We will make sure, that he is fine, and then we'll come back 'ere. I would _never_ abandon you, aniki!" He seemed to think, that the mere thought was an outrage.

The inu simply stared at his little brother. Then a small smile tugged at his lips and he ruffled the blond hair, admiring the crimson highlights. "Alright. But I have one condition." Blue eyes looked up in anticipation. "We will not try to get there right away. Neither of us is strong enough yet to defend ourselves against a whole village of yoki using ninjas, if it comes down to that. We will train hard enough first and _then_ start this ridiculous rescue mission. I will not have you die over something like that. Remember your promise, otouto. You will not die. And this whole idea is ludicrously dangerous."

Even before he ended his little speech, his brother already nodded eagerly. "Deal. We will train, become super strong and _then_ travel through the worlds to help the Kyuubi." Inwardly Sesshomaru shook his head. He made it sound so easy, even though he knew, it would be anything but.

—oOo—

 _Uzumaki Kushina. Namikaze Minato_.

The names spun around in his head. He repeated them again and again, never wanting to forget them. His whole life he had been wondering, who his parents were. If they were alive and didn't want him or simply died and couldn't keep him.

His earliest childhood fantasy had been his mom or dad coming to the orphanage, explaining that they had been grievously ill and couldn't look for him before, claiming him and bringing him home with them. Then he grew up and acknowledged the fact that this fantasy wasn't particularly probable. So he accepted, that they were dead like so many other parents of the other kids. There had been an awful lot of them after the Kyuubi attack. Then the whispers and bulling had begun and he had wondered, whether his parents simply didn't want him, because they too thought him a monster.

Now he knew the truth. And he didn't know what to feel.

His parents had indeed died in the Kyuubi attack. But they hadn't been victims. No, they had been shinobi, fighting for their village, and _sacrificing_ themselves to save everyone - at least in their eyes. That was another point he contemplated. Their sacrifice hadn't been necessary. They could've lived, if they had only let the Kyuubi speak and explain himself. And that really stung.

He was no fool - even though some might argue that. He knew, that the Kyuubi wasn't the most kind hearted creature. He had felt his thoughts after all. The demon didn't like nor cared for humans. But that could be because of his experiences. He wasn't _evil_ , like everyone in Konoha thought, and he most certainly was innocent of any crime he was accused of. Given the opportunity, the Kyuubi would have simply left and sheltered himself in solitude to wait for his time to reunite with his siblings.

So now he knew, who his parents had been and that they had died in vain. Frustration, that was what he felt. But so much more as well.

Another point he was mulling over was the fact, that it had been _his own father_ that had sealed the Kyuubi inside him, even though he had clearly thought it for the best. And people had _known_. He remembered it clearly. In the dream there had been the sandaime hokage watching from afar. The Kyuubi hadn't paid him any notice and focused at the situation at hand, but Naruto had, because he had _known_ that man, even if he looked a bit younger. And there had been other shinobi as well, watching as his father seemingly saved their lives. People had known, that he was _the yondaime hokage's son_ and no one had ever told him. They had seen him sealing the Kyuubi inside his own son and no one had told him. They whispered and hated and abused him, but they never once told him the truth. Heck, he wouldn't even have known that he was a demon vessel, if it hadn't been for _a traitor_ that told him the truth.

He had thought, that he could trust some of them at least. But he had been wronged and lied to the whole time. Betrayal. It made him feel betrayed. Frustration and betrayal.

And that was another point to think about. People had known, that the demon was sealed _inside_ him, but not him. That Naruto was his own person and merely a prison for the Kyuubi. But the villagers had never really cared about that. Instead, they had _chosen_ to close their eyes and simply crucify him anyhow for something, that wasn't his fault. And even if he really was a demon, it still gave them no right to treat him like that. He was innocent, had never committed any crime. And demons were not evil. They were like humans, some good, some bad. He knew that now. After all he had shared the Kyuubi's thoughts and feelings. And then there was his aniki and the rest of the castle. No two demons were the same, just like no two humans were. And that the villagers willingly closed their eyes and only saw, what they wanted, infuriated him. The sheer arrogance and ignorance of the act…

The people of Konoha had _chosen_ not to see the truth. Anger. He felt frustration, betrayal and anger.

He knew, it was unhealthy to harbour a grudge, and it was completely unlike him. But right now, he couldn't do anything else. Frustration, betrayal and anger raged inside him and easily overshadowed the revelation about his parents and that he himself hadn't killed them. He couldn't care less about that at the moment. He was frustrated about the world, betrayed by even the few people he had trusted and angry at everyone in Konoha.

Sure, there were probably as many good people as there were bad people in the hidden leaf, but none of its inhabitants could claim, that they had treated him right. He was young, innocent and an orphan and didn't deserve anything he had suffered. None of them had done right by him. Not even one. And for that he couldn't forgive them. Maybe in time the pain would fade, but as of right now he saw nothing even deserving of his presence there. Nor of the Kyuubi's.

As soon as he found him, he would take him back here to live with him and his brother. His brother… the Kyuubi had eight siblings. Eight siblings that had been sent to eight different temples over hundreds of years ago. Were they still there? Or had they suffered similar fates like the Kyuubi? It had seemed like the sealing of demons had become common practice by the time of his birth. They even had a name for the demon vessels, _jinchuuriki_. That meant, there were other demons trapped inside humans and suffering like the Kyuubi. And also other humans, that might have been treated like he had been for being a demon container. Maybe there were even other kids currently carrying a demon inside and being scorned by their village just like him.

Naruto swore, to make out the truth and help any demon and - if applicable - their respective jinchuuriki. He would find each of them and check, if they were happy and if not - which he highly suspected given his experiences with human nature so far - to take them away from there, to live here amongst their own kind. And he would let nothing stay in his way.

It was a promise. And he never _ever_ broke a promise.

Pure determination led him to take off his hitai-ate. For a moment he stared at the symbol of the hidden leaf. For years there had been nothing he had wanted more than to be a shinobi, prove himself to the village and become hokage. Now that dream felt hallow. His hand found the slit at the side of his kimono, where he had tied his weapon pouch to his leg, and drew a kunai. He had a new dream and it didn't include Konohagakure. His hand never faltered. His aim was precise. He looked at the metal plate.

A deep scratch crossed the symbol of the leaf and for the first time in his life, Naruto felt truly free.


	8. Chapter 8

"You look like shit." Drowning his instincts to throttle the fucking bunny, he forcefully took a couple of calming breaths. No need to insult, injure, harm, maim, torture or kill. No matter how satisfying that would… no, calming thoughts. Peaceful thoughts. Happy thoughts. "You know, you really look like you need a helping hand."

"Fuck off, pipsqueak!" Whoops. Calm. Peace. Happiness. No need to-

"What did I say about calling me that, you bloody harlot?"

He took a deep breath and reigned his anger in. The last two times fighting with the bunny did not end well after all. And he _did_ learn after a while. So he really just needed to hold it together. Seriously, why was this so hard? He had been living in a fucking temple for centuries, for Sage's sake! Why then, why could he not ignore that annoying, little pest, that called himself Fidelity? "I would implore you to leave me alone." It cost him all his energy to be this polite after that fucking bun- No, calm, peace, happiness. Remember, repeat.

"You know, if anyone here was interested in your plight, they would have shown themselves by now. I'm the only one that actually cares for a little fucking harlot like you." Why that little shit- no, calm, peace, happiness. Don't fucking forget. Insanity is doing the same things over and over again and expecting a different result. "Alright. I am feeling magnanimous today, little harlot. So tell me, what your problem is. I will help you, if I can."

Taking deep, _deep_ breaths, Kurama nodded tightly. "Thank you." Oh how he wanted to cut out his own tongue. But that fluffy piece of shit was the only one, he could talk to it seemed. "I am searching for a way back into my world, half of my soul that supposedly died, but did in fact not, and for a way to merge with it."

The fluffy, green bunny grunted and flopped down next to him. _Way too close._ "Huh. That is actually a fucking shitty situation you're in right now." The fox demon swallowed a scoff. Didn't he know it? And the bloody bunny practically sitting in his lap wasn't helping any. "Fine. I have decided." Suddenly the bunny was waaaay too close and patted him on the head. He continued his mantra. Calm, peace, happiness. Fucking green eyed monster petting him like a pet- Calm, peace, happiness. At the end of this he either had his anger management problems under control or contracted PTSD. Who knew, bunnies were such good therapists? Calm, peace, happiness.

"What is it, you decided?", he finally asked in a perfectly controlled manner after it became apparent, that the bloody spawn of evil and madness wasn't going to elaborate. He was still patting. Calm, peace, happiness.

"I will make you my disciple!"

"What the fuck, pipsqueak?" Oops. So much for that. He really didn't need another spine injury so soon after the last.

—oOo—

As soon as he saw his new instructor, he yelped and tried to hide himself behind his older brother. But it was no use. The demon - in every sense of the word - had already spotted him and squealed in delight. "Naru-chan!" His traitor of a brother inconspicuously stepped aside and sacrificed his little brother in order to get away from the mad woman. So Naruto suffered the fate of being squeezed to death by an overly enthusiastic spider yokai. Loudly protesting, he tried to divest her rather ample bosom of his face, but had only mediocre success. At least he was able to breath again. Somewhat.

"Gin-saaaan. Let me goooo!"

"But Naru-chan, I haven't seen you in sooo looong!" Her death grip tightened and he could only wheeze.

"Gin-san, kindly unhand this Sesshomaru's little brother and the ward of the West, so he may start his lessons. Furthermore it is unbecoming to conduct oneself as such in the presence of one's betters."

She pouted but finally let him go and curtsied gracefully while dipping her head low. "As you wish, Sesshomaru-sama. I meant no offense."

"None was taken, honorable seamstress. This Sesshomaru merely worried about his little brother's reputation."

Naruto didn't know, whether he wanted to kiss him for rescuing him or hit him for taking so long and making fun of him. So he settled for a sulky huff. "What are you doing here anyway?"

The woman who seemed to want to make herself the bane of his existence sweetly smiled down at him. He never hated his height more. "You know, I am the most sought-after seamstress in the castle and I am sacrificing my highly valuable time to come _here_ and teach _you_. So you better appreciate it, Naru-chan." She glanced to his brother, who had lifted an eyebrow and gave her _a look_. She barely refrained herself from rolling her eyes. "Fine. Naruto-sama. But make no mistake. As soon as you are back in my store, I will get my satisfaction." Then her eyes glided up and down his body. He felt strangely exposed under her gaze, like prey waiting to be torn apart by a predator. "My, if I may say so, you are looking really good in your new clothes, young ward. They bring out those pretty eyes of yours and make your beautiful hair shine. It is as if the sun herself deigned to kiss your body. A thousand poets couldn't-"

"Gin-san." Kosei's voice had a warning and sharp edge to it. "Do remember, that you are here as an instructor, not a seamstress and certainly not a light lady. Please do conduct yourself as expected from a noble lady in the presence of her lords or I will be obliged to find someone better suited to the task."

While his new instructor was assuring that no measures would be necessary, Naruto was trying to fingere out, what Kosei was meaning by a 'light lady'. Gin certainly looked petite enough to have a light weight, but something in the back of his mind was telling him, that Sesshomaru's instructor had not meant it in that sense. But before he was finished trying to unravel the mystery, both instructors had come to an agreement and pulled their lords into two different corners of the training field.

"Well, I am here to help you with your yoki chains. Kosei is rather gifted in the usage of swords, but he knows nothing about chains or in my case threads." He blinked in surprise as she called forth a couple of silvery, silky threads. "This is my natural weapon and you will see, that it has a lot in common with chains, though the latter will always be heavier and sturdier, which is good for an offensive and a lesser probability that they will be cut by your enemies, but they are also less subtle. Still, I heard that you prefer a rather acrobatic and versatile fighting style and treating your chains like I do my threads will greatly contribute to its effectiveness. I mean, sure you can treat them as a mainly offensive weapon like Sesshomaru-sama does with his whip, but where would be the fun in that? Using them to create yourself an advantageous environment is so much better. Watch."

With that she suddenly threw her silky threads in every direction, creating some kind of net in a vague sense of the word, and jumped up. Then she continued to use them as an additional kind of floor, jumping to and fro, always changing direction. After a while of doing that and proving her own physical abilities, she upped the game by letting threads appear and disappear as she saw fit, never missing a step or grip. When she was satisfied, showing him that awe inspiring spectacle, she jumped even higher and towards a place, where there were no threads she could possibly use. He thought about calling for medical help in advance, but she surprised him yet again by calling forth a thread, which she threw against a castle wall and stuck, using it to change her direction mid-flight, sliding down another thread and gracefully landing in front of him.

For a moment Naruto simply stared in awe. Then he threw his fists into the air and laughed. "That was so awesome, dattebayo! I wanna learn that! Please show me, please!"

Obviously feeling flattered she smiled coyly at him. "Of course, Naruto-sama. It would be an honor. This is only a fraction of what you will learn. Threads and chains have so many more applications, than you could probably imagine right now, young ward. They can distract or capture your opponent, be an obstacle, limit and expand reach and so much more. I will teach you, to do all that and more. I will teach so, so that they don't simply feel like a weapon, but an extension of yourself."

—oOo—

That evening the two brothers were dining together in their personal dining room. The issue of food was weighing heavily on the younger's mind. He bemoaned the loss of available ramen, but even he had to admit, that the palace chefs were doing a fine job consoling his stomach. Still, it was strange that he didn't mind eating raw meat any longer. He continued to like cooked meat, but had discovered, that he didn't prefer one way or the other. On the one hand cooked meat had a nice smokey flavor, on the other hand raw meat still held tasty blood. He wouldn't complain either way and ate whichever was on the meal of the day. Nonetheless, he wouldn't deny, that he would do anything - _probably_ short of killing - to get a nice cup of ramen.

"Otouto." He looked up from his plate, that contained blood soaked vegetables and raw meat, which he suspected was of yokai origin. He idly wondered, if he should be concerned, that he was technically eating his own kind. Then again, it did taste good and seemed to be rather common here. "Your hitai-ate is scratched."

Feeling a little sad at the loss of a dream, but also determined and excited about his new one, he nodded. "Yeah, don't worry. I did that myself. It is a sign, that even though I have been a Konoha shinobi, I have cut all tied with my village. They treated me bad, but had no right to do that. The Kyuubi's memories have shown me that. They knew about my parents - they were their heroes! - and about the demon inside me, but no one ever told me anything. They hated me and hurt me, even though I'd done nothing wrong. They are so _blind_ and _stupid_. They don't even understand that demons aren't evil. I mean, there were nine temples with bijuu living in them for centuries and humans that talked with them. How could they forget that? How could they believe that demons are simple beasts and torture and imprison them? They _knew_ better once and _chose_ to ignore that. So, yeah. I have nothing left in Konoha. Even the people, that I thought were precious to me have lied and betrayed me. I am done with the village. It isn't my home anymore. My home is with you, aniki, and nowhere else."

Sesshomaru smiled a little, but it did not reach his eyes. "I am sorry, you had to live through that. I thank all kami for whatever sent you to me that day."

That elicited an honest grin from the kitsune. "Yeah me too, dattebayo! But we have to get super strong super fast! The Kyuubi had eight siblings and I think, they were sealed into humans, too. They must be in other villages, because no one else in Konoha was treated like I was. But I believe, the other humans with demons inside them are suffering, just like I was. I wanna help them! How long do you think, will it take us?"

The inu lifted a shoulder. "I do not know. A couple of years at best, a couple of decades probably, well over a century at worst. A daiyokai is considered an adult when they reach their three-hundredth year. After that one ages rather slowly until they reach their prime, upon which our bodies will go into stasis. The more years pass, the slower one ages."

That earned him a look of pure shock. "What?! Over a hundred years?! Noooo. That is too long. Who knows, how many humans vessels die in misery until we're there? I mean, the demons will probably still be there, but they would have to suffer for sooo long!"

His big brother sighed a little. "I know. But consider, that we are still young. We do not yet have the power to achieve the goal you have set for us, especially if it is going to be the two of us against multiple ninja villages - whole counties - and no allies in reach." Seeing the sun-kissed boy in front of him pouting and deeply depressed, he added: "Though to cut some of the time needed to prepare short, I suppose, I can use our evenings to research dimensional travel in the library, while you catch up on your studies." Kami knew, the boy needed that time.

Before the blond-haired demon could answer, there was a knock on the door. "Enter."

Hatsuo carefully entered. After claiming Naruto as his brother, Sesshomaru had made it perfectly clear, that he didn't care for any breach of privacy when they were together. His inu minder deeply bowed. "Mylord. Your honorable father sends word, that a messenger from the dragon clan has arrived. Ryukotsusei-sama will arrive in three weeks' time to renegotiate the peace treaties. He will stay until at least the solstice. Thus, Toga-sama has invited all great clan leaders to the festivities as a sign of further lasting peace and friendship. He implores you to prepare yourself and Naruto-sama, so that there be no disturbances."

The young heir nodded and dismissed him with a leave of his hand. But Hatsuo did not leave right away. Instead he hesitated and bowed anew. "Young lord, Toga-sama also wishes you to know that there have been several… incidences in his chambers in the past few days."

Sesshomaru waited silently for the servant to continue without even twitching. Naturo though suddenly bit his lip and did his best to look like an innocent child that he most certainly was not. The minder appeared to be slightly uncomfortable, so the inu raised a single brow.

Hatsuo coughed a little and added: "The lord's chamber was flooded. His bed was soaked in some kind of itching powder solution. The walls were painted with unspeakable things. And Mylord's gowns were dyed orange. He wishes to know, whether you have knowledge of the cause."

The honorable heir to the West did not show any emotion at the news. "Indeed? How unfortunate for the lord. One would think, all his guards and attendants would notice such things in advance and prevent them from occurring in the first place."

His minder's lips quivered a little and his gaze quickly jumped to the slightly shivering frame of the young kitsune, who did his best, not to utter anything and remain seemingly inconspicuous. Sesshomaru made a mental note to himself to work on his little brother's acting. It was kind of a dead giveaway.

"Indeed. Pardon my intrusion, mylords." The inu nodded and dismissed him anew. This time, the servant duly left.

Then he stared at his younger brother, who looked at him slightly shaking, then burst out laughing. The heir allowed him the reprieve and himself a small smile. Then his smile turned foxy.

"Alright, otouto. It seems, we will have a rather tight schedule, if we want to make you presentable within three weeks and socially and politically astute within the month or two. I fear, we will have to employ more clones and sacrifice our evening leisure time as well, in order to avoid you inciting a clan war."

Naruto suddenly stopped laughing.

—oOo—

"What did you dream about tonight? It did not seem unpleasant and you have been deeply in thought ever since waking up."

Naruto flushed. It had become somewhat of a ritual between them. Every night the kitsune would crawl into his brother's bed, since they ended up sleeping together because of the dreams anyway. And every morning - if the memory was not too traumatizing and didn't need to be taken care of right away - they would discuss it at breakfast. So far he had witnessed the seal transfer between Mito and his mom, Kushina, who he found out, were distantly related, and a couple of other painful or depressing memories like completely lonely nights bordering to thoughts of suicide, to which he wasn't a stranger, or a couple of attacks at his person, again to which he could relate. But this night, it had been something completely different and far more disturbing. And again, the Kyuubi had shared his opinion and reactions just like in all the other dreams.

"What is it, otouto? You know, you can tell me anything."

His eyes widened in slight panic. "I don't need to tell ya, how it felt to be inside my distantly related great-aunt or something while she had sex with her husband!", he blurted out, then clapped his hands over his mouth, completely and utterly mortified.

Sesshomaru chocked on a cup of tea and needed a couple of moments to find his composure again. All the while Naruto tried to imitate a tomato, if the color of his face was any indication.

"Err- well. I mean", the inu daiyokai began, then deeply inhaled and tried again, "it seems, we must… talk about certain things. Has anyone ever explained such things with you?" Naruto went even redder and shook his head, while his big brother favored a slight rosé tinge in his cheeks.

"We are not expected to experience our first stirring for a couple of years yet, but all young yokai are told before, just in case one matures earlier than expected. I will share, what I know of stirrings, courting and mating." Neither of them seemed particularly comfortable with the subject.

—oOo—

Their afternoon training sessions were split into four parts. First, they would increase their stamina and speed together. Following they would improve their usage of their respective primary weapon with their personal instructors. Then they would train to better control their yoki and to access their primary affinity, during which Sesshomaru also worked on his light affinity for the first time in his life.

Afterwards it was time to train with physical weapons and hand-to-hand (claw-to-claw) combat. While Sesshomaru mainly focused on refining his katana technique and second on wielding a wakizashi and a naginata, Naruto continued to better his aim with shuriken and senbon. He also discovered the usage of ninja wire and sai, while testing the weapons in the armory in hopes to find a fitting one.

He was further encouraged to learn how to wield hand-fitting war fans. Not only were they small enough to fit into any kimono and could be carried around even when he had to disarm in a political setting, they also suited his wild fighting style and could later be used to control his yoki affinities, especially his wind one. He had a little problem with getting used to them, but he was still miles better with them than with a sword. Kosei could only cringe when thinking about how a katana in the young kitsune's hands made him a linear thoughtlessly wielding beast. His big brother and Kosei had unanimously decided, to never give him a weapon he could use with both hands again. It tended to make him dumb.

All the while, a couple of kage bushins continued Naruto's education.

During one of those training sessions, a messenger interrupted them by informing them, that Ryukotsusei, the lord of the South, had arrived and was just freshens up. Sesshomaru looked at his little brother earnestly, while the clones dismissed themselves. "This is it. You better recall our lessons, otouto. The West is strong, but we have had enough war in the past century. We cannot afford another. And remember, you are the ward of the West. What you do _matters_."

Naruto, for once completely sober himself, nodded gravely. He understood perfectly, what was on the line. And be it the village or his brother's home, he had come to understand responsibility somewhat. He had seen, what happened in Wave country when things got out of control. Had seen Sasuke fall. And there was no way he would let something similar happen to his big brother.

The two of them bathed and properly dressed into suitable attire. Naruto had learned how to put on a kimono by now, but the inu checked him over anyway. This was important after all. Not only was it Naruto's first formal outing, but the negotiations with the dragon clan was as strained as never before. Just a couple of weeks ago, there had been a minor skirmish on the land between their borders. It had yielded losses on both sides.

Like they had practiced before, they strode gracefully to the parlay chambers. On the threshold Sesshomaru gave up katana and wakizashi to a servant, while Naruto did the same with two sai and his weapon pouch. Not that he was particularly proficient with the former, but Sesshomaru had rammed the importance of proper bladed weapons suited to one's station into him. Just giving up his weapon pouch and not wearing anything else would suggest, that he was an assassin and incapable of defending himself in an earnest fight of honor. And that would apparently be political suicide. So they shamed the heck out of the situation and hoped they bought it.

Bowing deeply first to their father and then to their guest, they took their place on the cushions to Toga's right. Apparently they had shared some polite banter before their arrival.

Ryukotsusei's human form was a fright in itself. He had wild shaggy black hair, that reached as long as any proper lord's to his waist. The minimum length for those of station. No more, no less. That in itself was a statement. He was a hulk of a man with arms as large as some men's torso. His face was all ridges and edges. Not a single soft line. Blue lips and blue birth markings, that reached up and down in pairs from the chin and forehead respectively. Adding crimson irises and more than protruding upper canines, he was a sight to behold. And feared.

The dragon grinned unpleasantly as he looked the two boys up and down. "So good for you to join us Sesshomaru-san. It has been some time. Last this Ryukotsusei remembers, you reached no higher than his knees."

That… was not exactly a lie, but an exaggeration. Sesshomaru was pretty sure, that he _had_ been taller than that, but admittedly not by much. Not that he reached anywhere near Ryukotsusei's or even his father's height yet. He was one-hundred-fifty. He had over a century left to grow. There was no need to emphasize his lack of height unless to provoke him. So he did the prudent thing and retorted flatly: "Indeed. Times seem to change so fast and vastly. It is a wonder, you haven't changed just as much, Ryukotsusei-sama. Do tell, what is your secret?"

The grin the dragon gave him, could have chilled a dead body. It was all teeth and no lips involved. "As sharp a tongue as ever, young lord. Careful, you do not want to hurt yourself in front of audience." His predatory gaze wandered to the inu's left, where Naruto sat completely stiff. "This Ryukotsusei sees, you have acquired a new pet. Was the last one not to your satisfaction?"

Sesshomaru had no problem keeping his face completely emotionless, even if Naturo went a little red due to repressed anger. He seemed to have learned enough to follow at least some of the many implications in that single statement. But he kept silent as practiced. "Ah and Un are completely satisfactory. There is no more furious mount in a fight. This Sesshomaru thanks you for presenting them. But this Sesshomaru must correct you as he is sure you have made a mistake in ignorance and meant no offense. This is this Sesshomaru's little brother, Naruto, ward to the West."

Everything in the dragon's face dripped of insincerity. From the humored red eyes over the toothy grin to the twitch in his nose. "Is that so?" He turned to the kitsune and bowed his head in a minuscule motion. "You have this Ryukotsusei's sincerest apology, young ward. No offense was meant. There simply was a little confusion on the matter as to why such a creature as yourself finds itself on this esteemed young lord's side. This Ryukotsusei is sure, you understand, do you not?"

Well, after this direct question there was no way Sesshomaru could continue to shield him any longer without making him out to be weak. He just hoped, his little brother was prepared enough for this situation.

"This Naruto accepts you apology Ryukotsusei-sama." And it was plain as day, he was not used to the royal pattern of speech. It was nothing specific that gave him away. The tone was a little off. The rhythm didn't exactly match. The smoothness felt a little rough. It was a lot of little things, but by the deepening predatory grin, Sesshomaru could tell, the dragon had noticed it like a shark notices a single droplet of blood in the ocean.

Still, his little brother braved on. "Though this Naruto does not understand your confusion, Ryukotsusei-sama. Is it not the natural way of things, for the lesser beings to crave the stronger one's attention? And is it not the natural way of things, for the strongest clan to appreciate extraordinary beings and give them a rightful place at its side?"

Sesshomaru sighed silently in relief. It was an accepted truth that the kitsune clan was one of the lesser clans in terms of strength, if not numbers. Even after all these weeks Sesshomaru could not believe that Naruto was as strong as he was. And it would be something, no one would expect, when they tested him, as they inevitably would in due time. He really looked foreword to when this time would come. For now though, they had to hangle on to the lines learnt by heart for each possible situation.

Ryukotsusei lifted a single, ragged eyebrow. "This Ryukotsusei sees, the kit has claws. Though it would be a dark day indeed, if your clan needed a kit's claws to defend itself."

This insult definitely aimed at his father. But Toga had not been the lord of the West for so long in vain. He immaculately responded in kind. His gaze met Sesshomaru's once and his son read the approval inside them. His stomach fluttered in happiness. They had done good.

—oOo—

That evening Naruto plopped onto Sesshomaru's bed with a groan. "I'm never gonna go to a social or political thingy again!"

Amused Sesshomaru primly sat down next to the slouching mound that was his brother and petted him on the messy blond head. "You did well, otouto. Since we are too young to actually be part of the treaties, we are excused of any formal setting until the arrival of the other clan heads. They will be arriving with their respective heirs, so we cannot avoid them. It will be expected of us to receive and entertain them."

The kitsune groaned again and pulled a pillow over his head. "So more weeks of learning!" His voice was strongly muffled through the fabric, but even if Sesshomaru hadn't understood, he already knew, what his brother was going to say.

So he did the reasonable thing. "Well, when the solstice is over with no major incident, we will be free tot do as we please again. I would like to show you the art of hunting and maybe we could visit some natural hot springs. I know a place, where we would be free to train your shinobi arts as we like." Bribing. It worked every time. That much Sesshomaru had learned so far. Naruto's eyes lit up and the grin on that sun-kissed face warmed him up inside.

It was good, not to be alone anymore.

—oOo—

"Ne, aniki." Sesshomaru looked up from a scroll and to his brother, who had been memorizing the different clans, their heads, heirs, allies, enemies, trades, treaties and holdings. "Do you think, we will really have peace? Ryukotsusei looked like he would like going to war better."

The inu sighed a little and put the scroll down. "I do not know. I certainly hope for peace. Our forces are evenly matched. Our allies likewise. While the dragon clan is allied with the east, we have a long standing friendship with the wolves of the north. So outside forces are equals. And while we only have one minor great clan as our direct subjects, the panthers make that up by matching the force of both, the dragon's bakeneko and tanuki. The small clans in both territories are similar in numbers. And the north and the east are matched as well. So if there really was a war breaking out, what do you think, would happen, otouto?"

For a while, Naruto actually thought about the answer. Over a month of having quite a couple of shadow clones taught about everything and anything had made him a little more thoughtful and squished his recklessness just a bit. It wasn't like he had become a great strategic master mind or anything, but had learnt to pause and think before giving an answer. Even if his instinct was to give one right away. But after getting the advise to try to imagine scenarios he had greatly improved. So he did just that. And blanched.

"It would be a blood bath", he finally whispered. "If both sides are both equally strong, a lot of people would die. And a lot of yokai are just as stubborn as shinobi. They wouldn't stop."

Gravely nodding, Sesshomaru petted his little brother's head. "Indeed. Neither would back down until their foes laid dead in front of their feet. Especially if there were heavy losses - which would definitely happen. They would not want for their comrades and brothers to have died in vain. And since two of the greatest clans are leading the war, the other two would be honor bound to assist their respective allies. And with them come all the other lesser great clans and smaller clans. This looming war could wipe out the entire yokai population. The only ones not involved in this war would be the neutral clans under the guidance of the mirrors, the kappa and the trees."

That made Naruto's nose scrunch, because a thought just occurred to him. "So why don't we ally with those three? I mean, we would be more and stronger than the dragons then. So we would have nothing to fear anymore."

Ruefully, Sesshomaru lifted the right corner of his mouth. "If only that would be so easy. No one could ever find the mirror clan. The kappa are spread throuout the world and couldn't possibly choose a side and peril some of their own. And the tree yokai have similar problems. But even if they were united, they are lead by the oldest yokai alive and are set in their ways. If any party could convince a neutral great clan to join them, they would have by now."

Naruto sighed deeply. "I really don't understand, why we can't all just get along. I mean, we are all yokai. We aren't all that different. Doesn't that count for something?"

"Ah but we are, little brother. And yet, we are not." The kitsune looked utterly confused, so he further explained: "Each clan and yokai race has their own instincts and traditions. For example, we inu are proud and strong. Nothing matters more than the pack and it's pride. We are a yokai clan of unity and rise and fall with the strength the pack provides. That is why the alpha, our lord, is not just the ruler of our people, but its protector. He represents the strength of the pack and uses his own strength to keep the pack whole and safe, as you well know. Now, what did you learn about dragon yokai?"

Naruto scrunched his nose again and concentrated on recalling his lessons. "They are resolve and loyalty. They follow a single leader not because of family, but because they believe in him and his resolve. And the leader needs their collective loyalty to further pursue their resolve."

"Indeed. And tell me, otouto, what about bird and wolf yokai?"

"The bird yokai live with pride and resolve. They don't believe in a person, but a cause. They think that all is acceptable in honor of their beliefs. So they gather to make them come true and have the most capable of them lead them to their cause. And the wolf yokai are loyalty and strength. They follow their alpha because he provides for the pack and keeps them safe. In turn they give him the strength to keep doing that. It's like with inu, but the other way around."

"This is correct as well. Now tell me the difference between them and tell me also, what it is they all have in common."

That kept him preoccupied for a couple of minutes. Sesshomaru didn't move and regarded him closely. One could nearly see the wheels turning inside the blond's head. And finally like a cloud in front of the sun drifting away, his face lit up.

"All clans hold together and follow one person. But each clan does it for different reasons." He looked so proud of himself, Sesshomaru couldn't resist smiling a little, pride welling in his chest as well.

"Indeed. A clan's pride or loyalty is the measure of its strength and resolve. We are all the same, but yet different in unique ways. It is the reason, the four great clans of the north, east, south and west have been ruling the lands for so long."

He smirked a little, as he looked at his deeply in thought brother. "Now don't believe, I have forgotten, that you still haven't finished your task. We have little time left for your studies. Better use it while you still can. Remember, the future of yokai kind could be depending on them. And the first delegations are due to arrive soon."

—oOo—

"Mylady, another procession is in sight to the north."

Kimi looked up from her book as she heard the voice of her attendant and parted the palanquin's silky drapes a little. As she caught sight of the other processions's banner, she smiled serenely.

"Well, it would be shameful and offensive not to greet them, wouldn't it not?"

"Indeed, Mylady. We shall redirect our course and convene with the other clan at sunset to spend the night, if it pleases you, Mylady."

Kimi simply continued smiling. The game was on. Strength of the pack, indeed.

—oOo—

Damn, it took me a little longer to upload than anticipated because of language problems. More down below.

But anyhow, I am apparently a sadist. I simply love to torture my favorite character ever. Poor Kurama. Makes you think, what I do to people I really like, right? Don't worry, no one is mentally (too) scared yet;).

A little fun fact about Fidelity: actually, his name was Fertility first, but then I thought Fidelity suited him way better and made much more sense. He will show up more in Kurama POV, but because starting right now Kurama will appear less often, so will he. Still, I'd like to hear your thoughts about him.

Yes, it gets a little political. But never fear, it won't be too much. I myself never was a fan of too much politics. Still, it is an essential part of this arc because of the war leading to Toga's death. And I like exploring the cultural side of it.

But it also further provides me with an opportunity to introduce new as well as known characters that may or may not be important for the Inuyasha arc. I am curious whether you can guess right, which known characters I will be using in this arc. Please do also consider, that I might provide just a little background information on those characters while I'm at it.:)

So now for the sad part: I will probably not be able to upload a new chapter next week due to personal reasons. This week of mine will be rather eventful. I doubt, I will have much time to write and I did not manage to wholly complete the next chapter in advance. So I do not want to get your hopes up in vain. I am sorry, but you most likely will have to wait two weeks this time:/.

Still, any **review** for this one will be greatly appreciated.

My answers to the previous ones:

(and please guys, I know a couple of languages but it has been a while for some of them. Do try to write in English please? French if you must. It is my second best language. But Spanish? Seriously, I haven't even laid eyes on a Spanish sentence in over five or six years, maybe even seven. And even then I have never been particularly proficient in it. Though I have to admit, it was rather fun to rummage around my brain for lost knowledge. Still, it took me an eternity to more or less decipher the review, let alone answer it!)

 **JasperK:** First of all, thank you so much for all your reviews. It is always nice to know that one can inspire such by writing:). And yes, I absolutely feel for the fur ball as well. Actually Naruto scratching his hitai-ate was not planned. It just felt right at the moment. And in reflection I am really happy I wrote that in the end.

 **xhope14x:** Thanks:). I was considering it but I know myself too well I guess. I would just fool around while writing and be hard pressed to make the upload on time. Having a set time in a rather close future makes me far more reliable…

 **Silvermane1:** Thanks!

 **Doomqwer:** Oh yes, I always liked it in the canon when Naruto got all serious (as few times as it happens) because it shows there isn't just a happy goofball in there but a human with actual feelings. It doesn't mean he isn't a happy goofball also;). Yes, I will explain the time difference as soon as the brothers themselves become aware of the actual problem and find a solution (though it will be in a different manner than you probably think. I believe I will be going with the complicated way…).

 **Guest:** Beserk, huh? I must admit I have always heard great things about it but I never actually came around to read it. But considering it's good reputation I'll take it as a huge compliment :). It is especially flattering because I love a character's development according to their circumstances and experiences. It is my preferred reading and writing style. That you spotted it makes me happy. ^^

 **Nadeshiko80:** Uff… Me siente un poquito abrumada. No comprendido todo. Solamente lo esencial. Al menos, lo pienso… (Ha pasado mucho tiempo desde que aprendía el castellano en mi escuela…) Así que gracias. Y no. Por ahora, no planeo hacerlo yaoi. Debo admitir que es un poquito tentador… Pero no. Son simplemente hermanos - dos niños pequeños quien necesitan el un del otro.


	9. Chapter 9

"Mylord! I beg of you! Cease this unbefitting behavior!"

"No! Never! You will feel my wrath!"

Sesshomaru sighed silently and turned a page in his book without letting his crazy little brother disturb him. He really had no idea, where he had gotten a bucket of pink paint. After all, the guards had begged and bribed anyone who could get a hold of such pranking items, not to give them to their young ward. Though he had a sneaking suspicion that the blond whirlwind, who was running away from his personal guards while crazily laughing at the moment, had utterly charmed the maids by his nervously cute behavior into doing his every bidding and keeping silent about it.

Not that he himself minded. He had to admit, that seeing the highly trained guards faces, who had tenaciously worked decades and centuries to attain such a prestigious position, after they had been dunk in glue and feathers had been a uniquely amusing moment. And as long as the prankster only did his work while not in the presence of nobility or foreign guests and didn't interrupt important works nor damaged irreplaceable property as promised, the young lord was perfectly fine pretending it didn't happen and he didn't see.

After all, it did say something about his little brother's skills, that he succeeded more often than not and constantly improved, while the guards learned how to protect themselves, so he could evenly match such proficient warriors.

Last but not least, he had learned, that getting the pranking out of the younger's system resulted in a more comfortable life for himself. And he was not ashamed to blatantly encourage him to keep it this way.

"Aniki, look 'ere!"

With a feeling of dread he looked up and saw the kitsune run towards him, a bucket of splaying paint in his arms, that splashed around everywhere he went. A pair of high ranking guards of the royal family hurried after him, despair marring their pink faces, which were nicely framed by pink hair.

The young lord's eyes widened a little as he took in the sight of his absolutely insane little brother with the bucket of paint running towards him and the couple of priceless, unique books surrounding him. Sometimes, Naruto was utterly adorable. Sometimes, he wanted to wring his neck. It wasn't that he was malicious, merely the fact that the blond could be a little more circumspect at times. He meant good and all in fun, but sometimes he simply needed to be literally hit with a rather blatant hint.

Naruto 'eep'ed and hurriedly changed his course so to avoid the pair of solid light shards that imbedded themselves with a thump a little behind the place, he had been a mere moment before.

The little yokai halted clumsily and looked at his big brother incredulously. "Aniki! Did you just throw them at _me_?!" Sesshomaru merely lifted one perfectly arched eyebrow. The kitsune took it as the answer it was supposed to be and gaped. The guards had caught up, but kept their distance after a look at their young lord's expressionless countenance. "But- but-", he sputtered, "you _can't aim_! You could've hit me!"

That was true. Unfortunately. In their weeks of practice and his own attempts to use light in other various ways he had never thought of before but did now because if his genius little brother, he had never once hit the target in practice with his relatively newly developed light shards.

Still, he didn't let this petty fact deter him from staring his little brother down. "And yet you would have healed. Alas, these _priceless_ and _one of their kind_ tomes would not. Remind this Sesshomaru again, what you promised in regards to such unique and irreplaceable items?"

Naruto actually looked a little contrite. "Err… not to damage them?" He laughed a little and scratched his neck. It was a nervous habit, he had not yet been able to shed. "But how come, you think that these lame books are important anyway. They are boring, dattebayo!"

Sesshomaru gravely inclined his head. "Indeed, they are rather tedious to study." He held up the one he was currently reading, his face not betraying even a twitch. "This is the diary of a snake yokai, who presumedly arrived from another world, in which yokai served higher beings of existence by guarding them and their shrines to watch over the human population and answering their wishes. His want for a master is rather irritating. You are indeed wise, otouto. Go ahead and paint this irreplaceable and boring book. This Sesshomaru is sure, he will find another mention of a dimensional traveler within a century or two, maybe three."

For a moment Naruto simply stared at him. Then he 'eep'ed again and hastily removed the bucket of paint from his presence. "I didn't mean it like that! Really, I didn't! They aren't boring, not boring at all! I mean, they are… err…" He visibly searched for an appropriate word, "interesting! Yes, interesting, dattebayo! Very interesting! Don't let me distract you or anything! I'll just go that way and you… just keep on reading!"

He was gone even faster than he had arrived. Bemused, Sesshomaru snorted as soon he and his two attendants vanished and did just as he was told. He continued reading in bliss silence, undisturbed.

—oOo—

Never let it be said, the Inu no Taisho wasn't a generous host. In fact, he knew perfectly well, how to equally impress, frighten and charm any guest he had ever received.

Naruto, never having been one to be easily frightened - at least not by actually _noticing_ the subtle threats and meanings in each gesture -, was simply in awe. He had never before seen such grandeur. Only weeks of training and his big brother subtly nudging him kept him from openly gaping.

It was the evening of the first guests having arrived aside from the dragon clan. As such the banquet in their honor was as lavish as one would expect for a gathering of such highly prestigious yokai.

The two brothers had dressed in richly decorated clothing of high quality fabric, each complimenting the outfit of the other. Gin had outdone herself once again. As soon as Sesshomaru had ordered the garments for the weeks of political outings, she had jumped at the opportunity to surpass each of her creations with the next. Poor Naruto had actually tried to not only fake a hurting stomach but a fainting fit, when the former hadn't worked. Not that the latter did any better.

"Uruha-sama, may this Sesshomaru humbly welcome you and your retinue and also present you with his brother, Naruto, ward to the West."

An impressive looking man draped in white silks and fur smiled honestly at the young heir and let his canines show. "Sesshomaru-san, it is indeed a pleasure to meet you again. This Uruha has heard quite a lot about your new brother", he winked mischievously towards Naruto, "all good, this Uruha assures you. May this Uruha also present his daughter, Ayame, heir to the north, to the two of you. You may remember her, but she has always been rather shy and kept out of sights while you were visiting last time. This Uruha was hoping, you would indulge this one in keeping her a little company."

Naruto blinked. A little girl with copper red hair and a mostly white kimono, barely eight or nine years of age if measured by human standards, was subtly hiding a little behind her father.

"It will be this Sesshomaru's pleasure." His brother was undeterred as always, his face blank of emotions as he offered her a clawed hand. She shied a little away, hiding even more behind her father, trembling just a bit.

Before any of the two males could to anything, Naruto smiled brightly and stepped closer. "It's o- all right", he barely remembered in time he was supposed to use acceptable speech for this evening. Still he smiled on. "Sesshomaru-oniisan is really nice. And this Naruto promises, the three of us will have a lot of fun."

He smiled on, while offering her a hand of his own. Inside though, he was a little nervous. Aside from his brother, he had never actually held anyone's hand before. No one had ever wanted to. But he forced himself, not to let it show. After all, no one here was like back in Konoha, as his aniki had repeatedly told him. No one here had any prejudice against him being a monster and killing all their loved ones. In fact, he had been told, that he would be seen as rather unthreatening and cute. He twitched inside. Not that he liked to be told, he looked cute, but it was way better than being told to be a monster.

Cautiously the redhead crept away from her hiding place behind her father. After one last look to the white haired wolf clan leader, who nodded at her encouragingly, she slowly placed her hand in his. His smile widened even more if possible. Hesitantly she smiled back and the kitsune felt a little warmth of pride and happiness swell in his chest.

Then, for a moment, he panicked. He had achieved his goal. But what to do now? How could he possibly interact with the girl? Never before had he come this far interacting with a young child, let alone a girl. What did girls even talk about? Within his next heartbeat he went through every conversation including a young girl that he had eavesdropped. Finally he settled for one subject that had come up rather often during those conversations.

"Did you know, that this castle has a garden full of flowers? There are all kinds of flowers: lilies, roses, irises, and so on. Do you like flowers, Ayame-san?" His heart pounded. Was that the right question to ask? He had no idea. And even if, those three names were about everything he knew about flowers. What if she actually expected more? Well, _if_ that was the right topic in the first place.

Her eyes suddenly lit up and his heart felt like soaring. He decided then and there, that he didn't really care about anything else.

While the two younger yokai started to talk about flowers, Uruha subtly nodded his head to beckon Sesshomaru to follow him. When they stood a little farther away from the pair, still in sight of line, he sighed a little.

"You and your brother have this Uruha's thanks. He presumes, you have heard of what happened?"

The young heir nodded gravely. It was something no one dared talk about and had been hushed up, but as their closest ally, the Inu no Taisho had received a coded message of little Ayame's ordeal to warn him. After all, if one prestigious heir had been successfully kidnapped, it would be sound to reason, that it could happen to another.

"Indeed. You have nothing to fear for, Uruha-sama. This Sesshomaru and his little brother will endeavor to make sure, she will always be accompanied and safe whenever entrusted to do so. As you have seen, Naruto-kun has a remarkable kindness that shall make her at ease, but he is also a strong fighter, in case something happens. Not that Toga-sama will ever let anything happen to his guests."

The wolf yokai smiled fondly and bowed just the barest of bows to one of lower station. "This Uruha thanks you. Toga-sama is indeed fortunate to have such remarkable sons."

Everything inside him cringed at the mention of Naruto also belonging to his unappreciative father, but he didn't let it show. He bowed a little lower than his guest. "This Sesshomaru thanks you for your trust and kind words."

With that he reunited with his brother and their charge and had to keep a smile off his face at the sight that welcomed him. After mere minutes, his little brother already had the shy and easily frightened wolf yokai giggling. Giggling of all things. Inwardly shaking his head, he showed the two of them to their respective places at the banquet.

At the opposite side of the low table across from them already sat a pair of young adults indulging themselves in light flirtation. The young woman, not even out of her late teens if measured by human years, was so charmingly dressed, it bordered on being indecent. Her shining golden hair, which followed her very shape, as well as her silken red-golden kimono complimented her entire sleek appearance.

She had her hand on a rather red faced young man, a couple of years older than herself, and sat nearly inappropriately close to him. His black pupils were clearly dilated, which was accentuated by his pitch black birth markings that surrounded his eyes.

Trying not to cringe at the two of them, Sesshomaru flatly, mercilessly and unabashedly interrupted: "Inina-san, Kamon-san, it is a pleasure to welcome the two of you in this castle again. May this Sesshomaru present his little brother, Naruto, ward to the West, and his esteemed guest Ayame-san, heir to the north."

Kamon visibly flinched and became even a little redder, while Inina nearly pouted. "Sesshomaru-san. It is a pleasure, indeed." Yet her voice betrayed nothing. It was politely amused as ever. "It has been far too long. Look at you, you are becoming a handsome, strong yokai", she purred lightly, "if you become even more handsome, you will frighten every woman away by the time you are ready to mate. They will wish not to commit a sacrilegious crime by tarnishing this body made by the kami themselves."

Ayame looked cutely confused in between the two brothers, while Naruto became beetle red and gaped just a bit, despite every training received so far. Being told, the bakeneko heir was a terrible flirt was not the same as experiencing it. And while the young kitsune had involuntarily learned a whole lot in his dreams from the Kyuubi so far, he was still a kit himself.

Sesshomaru of course ignored her slightly silky tone and nodded without loosing his countenance. "You always have the kindest words and the most impressive imagination concerning the future, Inina-san."

She smiled. It was not a kind smile. "And you always have such a way with words. You always leave a woman cold without offense, Sesshomaru-san."

Her eyes wandered to his side. "It is a pleasure to finally meet the two of you. This Inina has heard _so much_ about you. They say, the princess of the north is such a delicate and beautiful young girl. She reminds everyone of flowers." The girl trembled a little under her predatory gaze and leaned a little towards Naruto, who smiled at her reassuringly, though throughly unnerved himself.

"And Naruto-san, it really is fascinating to meet you. Never before has this Inina heard of a yokai whose tail and hair color do not match."

That single sentence froze Naruto up. A thousand thoughts and none raced through his mind. He had thought, he was finally normal and with his own kind. But of course, something always goes wrong with him. Would his brother look differently at him, because he had finally been made aware of his unnormalness? Would he outcast him, now that he knew? He didn't dare say a single thing, let alone look his beloved brother in the eyes.

So it catched him rather off guard, when he heard the cold voice of his brother: "Indeed. It is quite remarkable and only befitting that a prestigious yokai such as this Sesshomaru was blessed with a truly unique brother. You will come to see, that Naruto-kun is a yokai unlike any other, not only in that regard."

His head shot up and his heart made a leap. Of course, he hadn't needed to worry. His aniki was the best. He would never abandon him! Grinning like a fool and feeling like the world itself couldn't harm him, if it tried, he turned daringly to the young woman himself.

"This Naruto appreciates your kind words and will endeavor to continue to astonish you. It would be a shame, if your visit was not interesting, would it not?"

Her smile turned to a grin, which seemed slightly feral, and she nudged her friend a little. "Kamon-kun and this Inina shall be happy for your company, young ward."

The heir to the tanuki clan nodded tightly, but didn't talk. No one really minded. After over three-hundred years, Kamon was yet to utter a coherent word in the presence of strangers and woman. So he had learnt to keep his mount shut as to not embarrass himself too much. Which had only made Inina try harder to get him to reciprocate her flirting.

Inwardly sighing, Sesshomaru mentally prepared himself yet again for a dreadful banquet amongst prestigious clans' heirs.

—oOo—

"And then he said, that he could not be bothered by such trivial things like priceless paintings, because the most beautiful sight already was before him. Seriously, how pitiful could a yokai get with his wooing lines?"

Inina didn't even wait for an answer, but instead continued prattling on. One of her hands was looped around Kamon's elbow, the other around his own. Sesshomaru tried to ignore her monologue altogether and concentrated on looking dignified even though he didn't even remotely reach the tip of her chin with the top of his head and had to take two strides for each of her own.

Each of the peasants they encountered in the slightly rough entertainment district - which Inina had been dying to see, ignoring any protest or voice of reason - backed away in respect and slight fear and bowed deeply in reverence. Inina paid them no mind. Kamon struggled to get one foot in front of the next while the bakeneko pressed her bosom against his arm. Sesshomaru, again, tried to look dignified and nodded cooly to a couple of higher class citizens. Even when forced to walk through such an unbecoming area, he had a reputation to maintain.

"Oh, this Inina is so happy, that you have passed your rite of passage, Sesshomaru-san. It will be this one's honor to show you the pleasures of growing up."

She smiled suggestively and he struggled to keep a cool facade. In reality, he found her absolutely overbearing and her constant implications exhausting. He wanted nothing more than to ditch her and go back to his brother. Still, politics demanded his presence and courteous answers. So he forced himself to say: "Indeed. Though one might keep in mind, that this one has not yet come of age."

She nodded sagely, somewhat sadly. "This Inina knows and will remember. But that doesn't mean, you have to completely forego any kind of pleasuring entertainment. And this one simply _has_ to see this. The West is after all known for its arts."

Then, against his and probably Kamon's will, she pulled them along into an o-chaya, one of the legendary teahouses of the West. Once inside, their guards already having secured the area, all motion came to a stillstand. All at once the people inside got on their knees and pressed their heads onto the ground.

"Rise, loyal subjects", Sesshomaru commanded after three heartbeats. Too fast and you were too lenient. Too slow and you were seen as someone who liked to abuse their powers. It had taken him some time when he was younger to find the right measure. "Continue with your work. This Sesshomaru and his guests are merely here for entertainment."

After a reverent: "Yes, mylord", the people begun to move again. They shuffled out of their way and some guests gave up the best seats in their favor. The inu wanted to sigh and by all the kami in the world just get out of here. But of course, the kami had but once favored him. So he surrendered himself to an annoying evening.

Sesshomaru waited in silence for his tea, made by another inu yokai. The man looked perfectly serene while preparing the tee, but the young heir smelled his fear and nervousness. It was not everyday, one had to attend to royalty in a random o-chaya in an area that he had never set foot in before. A word of displeasure from him or one of his guests could literally kill him. The inu daiyokai somewhat pitied him, but didn't let his emotions show.

The other geisha started to play music again which prompted Inina to shut up for the first time in what did not only felt like but actually were hours. As the lovely sound of an expertly played shamisen soothed the tense silence in the teahouse, Sesshomaru thought for the first time, that maybe he didn't mind much being here. At least the music seemed to have a positive effect on the bakeneko heir.

And it could have been worse. She could have dragged him to a house of prostitution. It would have been uncouth for her to even suggest, but as a host he would have been honor bound to accompany her. And no matter how proud he was about his rite of passage, he hadn't even had his first stirrings yet. It would have been beyond embarrassing.

A sigh came from Inina's other side and the inu saw Kamon relaxing a little as he took his tea from one of the tea masters of the house. It seemed, Inina was not the only one, who profited from this outing. Maybe, it hadn't been such a bad idea after all.

After the shamisen player, a surprisingly female geisha took over with her flute. There had been an increase of females in the geisha profession in the last years. Sesshomaru inwardly groaned when he remembered one of his economy lessons. The dispute about letting females become geisha had been a hard one. The yujo and oiran, prostitutes and courtesans, had been protesting heavily against it as they feared for their clientele. Only after the law, that female geisha were not allowed to pleasure men that way, had the protesting women calmed down. All in all that seemed simple enough, but the actual legal and historical facts had made his head ache all day. Let alone the question about male geisha pleasuring their costumers that way that had come up following the law about the females.

Forcing himself out of his thoughts, he took the time to appreciate the geisha's art. While he himself was not one for music, he could appreciate a skill that was clearly there. Give credit where credit was due. Also, it helped that he could use this visit to the teahouse to enjoy an impromptu meditation session. Not that he let it show. One could after all clear their mind with their eyes open.

After a while he had decided that it had been indeed a great idea to come here. Inina was a whole lot less annoying, Kamon's biting smell of uneasiness had faded and he had had the time and peace needed to exercise his mind.

Then the captain of a guard unit that had _not_ accompanied them on their way here burst into the room and fell to his knees in front of him. His heart sank as it anticipated what would follow. "Mylord! The Ino no Taisho commanded you and your guests to be accompanied back into the palace for security reasons. There has been an assassination attempt on Ayame-sama."

Even while the captain had been talking, Sesshomaru had already stood up, a hand on the handle of his blade. An acid claw wretched itself into his stomach and there was steel in his voice. "This Sesshomaru's brother, how is he and the wolf heiress?"

The guard cringed visibly and pressed his forehead onto the ground. "Forgive this palace's guards. Ayame-sama is well, but Naruto-sama…" He definitely hadn't the courage to continue to speak.

In rage and fear Sesshomaru drew his blade and let the point rest on the man's neck. His face was free of emotions, his voice completely even and cold as he asked the dreaded question.

"Is he alive?"

—oOo—

Naruto decided that he really liked Ayame-chan as he called her in his mind. After all those lessons his big brother had so kindly bestowed upon him, he had accepted that calling her that out loud was an impossible breach of conduct.

Still, she was cute, shy, easily excitable and utterly adorable. And most important of all, she actually seemed to like him. Usually girls were weirded out and disgusted by him or ran away in fear. Well, the girls back in Konoha. The ones here were so completely false - spotting falseness and manipulation had been one of his very first lessons - that he really didn't enjoy talking to them.

But Ayame-chan was different. So he made a point in spending a lot of his free time with her - as was expected for one of his position. Still, him spending all his time with the wolf heiress meant that Sesshomaru had to spend at least some of his with the bakeneko and tanuki heirs. His big brother was not happy about that. But he bore that burden with a resilience that would be admirable for even stone yokai.

If asked, the inu heir would tell Naruto that it was a duty and honor befitting his station. Though the kitsune rightly assumed that it was in fact plain torture that he took upon himself to protect Naruto from spending time with their unofficial enemies.

But every time, the younger of the two had spoken those thoughts out loud and protested that he didn't need protection, his big brother had laid a hand on his head and given him a typical near-but-not-overtly-shown-smile. "This is an aniki's duty, to protect his otouto." He had wanted to protest further but something had constricted his throat so that he no longer had the ability to speak. Instead he had simply hugged the life out of his perfect big brother.

So here he was once again, spending his evening in the gardens with the adorable little daiyokai while his brother had taken the older heirs to tour one of the castle's outer districts, which weren't the kind of places, one would bring a little girl.

He and little Ayame had taken to braiding flower wreaths. It wasn't exactly his most favorite past time, but it was giving him an exercise in being cautious and skilled while dealing with such delicate thing as flowers.

Well, that and the fact that he and the little wolf had decided unanimously that the guards would look way better with flower wreaths crowning their heads. And considering that it would be impolite to refuse a gift from a visiting heir of one of the four most powerful yokai clans, there wasn't a damn thing the honorable warriors could do about it but to wear them with dignity. Not that it was easy with the way Naruto was laughing at the two of them who had already graciously accepted their gifts.

Now they were working on their respective second pieces of art. These intended for the two remaining guards within sight that hadn't yet received one. Naruto was trying his hand with roses. They were particularly difficult to deal with, because of all the thorns. Mentioned thorns were the reason, Naruto had chosen them in the first place. Ayame-chan had been eying them with earnest interest, so he thought it wise to claim them as his before the little girl had any stupid ideas. His own hands didn't thank him for his chivalry.

"Ne, Naruto-san." He looked up from his work and saw, that little Ayame had stopped braiding and regarded him thoughtfully. "Where is your mother? I saw Toga-sama, but never your mother."

The blond had to pause his heart for a moment as he heard the implication. He had never really considered Toga as his father. He was it in name and station only. It was a means to an end, to make him Sesshomaru's brother. Never before had he even thought about gaining a so-called father in the process. Never mind the mother.

 _But my parents are dead._

They had died in vain, protecting those that hadn't needed protecting. It was like a punch in the face. He had thought that he had made peace with the death of his parents, but the painful throb his heart made, made him think twice about it.

For the first time in his life, he had their names, their faces, even their personalities. The dreams of the Kyuubi truly were a blessing in disguise. He didn't always dream about them. But he did see some scenes of their lives, his mother's especially. The dreams had lessened somewhat in the intensity of the Kyuubi's emotions. But there still were plenty of years to watch, that he knew. He learned that his mother could kick some serious ass and that his father could be pretty dumb at times. Even though his parents were dead, he got to get to know them, to see them live, to hear them laugh and cry. It was a blessing, but also a curse.

It hurt. It hurt so much to see them, to hear them, even to touch them through the Kyuubi. Because they weren't his memories. Because they were just in reach, yet utterly unreachable. Because each time he opened his eyes, they were gone. And a tiny, tiny part of him wished, he had never woken.

He loved those dreams. He hated them. They tore him apart. He was afraid and he didn't know what to do.

He hadn't told his brother, but he no longer went to bed with him because of the terrors he had to recuperate from when waking up. He clung to his brother, because on the one hand he needed him to calm down enough to fall asleep. He longed for and dreaded sleep all at once. On the other hand he needed him to be there when waking up. To know that he wasn't alone. To let go of the past, of his parents.

So being confronted with a new set of parents while still hanging on to his real parents seemed somewhat out of place for him. He stared at the little girl for a good while. She in turn drew her brows together and regarded him confused.

In the end, Naruto overcame the whirlpool of feelings within him enough to answer somewhat evenly: "Kimi-sama is living away from the castle. She has her own palace to watch over." Then to distract Ayame-chan he asked in kind: "So, what about yours, Ayame-san?"

The little daiyokai looked down to the half-finished wreath in her lap, looking sad. "She- she died protecting me. P-people were after me and-and-" She stopped, tears collecting in her eyes and threatening to spill.

Naruto became slightly panicked. What the heck was he supposed to do with a crying girl? "Ano-" He paused.

Suddenly he threw himself over the little girl. It was pure instinct. That he had even noticed was only because of Sesshomaru's and Gin's rigorous training. The wolf yokai cried out, while he grunted. A sharp pain spread around his back. He didn't need to look to know, that there was some sort of thrown or shot weapon buried in it. Before the guards had time to react, a second weapon buried itself, where the two daiyokai had been laying a split second before.

Naruto, who had narrowly avoided a second hit by jumping away, little Ayame in his arms, deposited his bundle behind a stone statue, on the far side of the assailant. Then he looked back and saw an arrow embedded into the earth. So that was most likely the thing sending strings of pain into his brain.

Two of the guards ran after the sniper, the other two stood guard next to them. For a heartbeat everything stood still. Then the air exploded in front of them.

Naruto had barely enough time to throw himself over the girl and duck their heads, before a blast wave pressed them into the statue and the guards away.

Excruciating pain blossomed on his back as the blasphemously expensive kimono burned and shredded away and left nothing but his bare skin to face the explosion. He screamed. Tasted blood on his tongue. Felt dry tears run down his cheeks. The agony felt like an eternity.

When the smoke finally cleared, he laid nearly unconscious on top of a crying, deeply distraught girl, barely hanging onto reality. Owlishly blinking to get a clear picture, he turned his head despite the pain to see two approaching figures clad in black. Or maybe only one. They were somewhat overlapping. He probably saw double.

He fought to have a clear mind, to think of _something_ that would keep them alive. But it was _so hard_ to even try. The assassin approached, drew a katana. The light of the setting sun reflected on the blade. A single thought made it through his mudded mind. His brother telling him time and time again during training, that if in mortal danger, in a fight against someone stronger, not to play the hero (or fool in his words), but to get away and stay alive.

He couldn't even think about the first part of the warning, but he could at least try to follow half of his brother's order. His trembling hands struggled to make a series of signs, never letting go of the girl.

Tiger. Boar. Ox. Dog. Snake.

—oOo—

I am absolutely and utterly sorry and ashamed of myself. I made you wait not only the mentioned one, but two weeks and two days. I'm a bad person…

In my defense, I had even more to do than anticipated and then I couldn't find a good way to write the middle part for the chapter for a while. Complete and annoying writers blockade. It sucks, but it happens to the best of us. And I am most certainly _not_ one of the best, so please have mercy and go easy one me, 'kay? :-)

And hey on the bright side I had at first planned to stop the chapter after Sesshomaru's part in the teahouse. But I didn't find anything to write before that part and didn't want to write for fillings sake so not to have a too short chapter. So yeah, that earns me some cookies right? O.O

Please don't stone me about etiquette. I'm making it up as I go to the best of my knowledge. Same with my murky history and culture knowledge about the Edo-period. I mean, there are some things, I actually know and/or look up, but I don't guarantee any kind of historical credibility here. Still, I do try my best.

Honestly, I feel for those heirs that are actually quite capable and old enough to join the adults conversations, but have to sit with eight- and twelve-year-olds. No wonder, Inina has taken to the challenge Kamon provides. Otherwise, she would surely be bored out of her mind. Really, I totally pity all of these kids. It was kinda fun to write though.

So what do you think? Guessed right, who I was referring to by implying, you would meet familiar faces with the new ones? I for one definitely like the idea of young Ayame and was quite eager to write about her. I mean, we don't know too much about her past except that she was once rescued by Koga, who promised to marry her. I hope, I portrayed her all right.

From the heir generation you will meet one other familiar yokai and hear about another one, who will not be present. But if you are a hard core fan, you will likely also recognize a few of the reigning generation, though some are also made up just like Uruha, Inina and Kamon.

 **Buterflypuss, Silvermane1, xx-BrittCullen-xx:** Thank you guys! Your support means so much to me. And I promise, I do try to keep uploading chapters regularly. (Focus on the key word _try_ …)

 **JasperK:** Oh thank god! I was so unsure, whether I could authentically write an uneasy Naruto that had all that knowledge hammered into his brain. That was my biggest worry in that chapter. Your comment totally relieved me:).

 **CallmeCrazylol:** Yeah the Inuyasha issue that will be arising within the next couple of months in this fanfic has given me some serious questions considering the plot to think about, but I believe I've found an elegant solution for it. Still, you are right, some things _will_ _have to change_. And all because of Naruto. Urgh, yes. An older brother Naruto. Though you have to admit, he didn't do half a bad job with Konohamaru considering his own upbringing. And yes, Kurama will be getting scenes on an on and off basis. I simply love him too much for anything else :P.


	10. Chapter 10

"Holy shit! You really are new to this, little harlot. But fear not! This Fidelity shall remedy this immediately. So, there are a couple of things you should know first. There are more worlds than you could ever count and each of them is different in their own way. But one thing always stays the same. In every world there are primordial humans and primordial demons in the very beginning of time."

Kurama narrowed his eyes. "You say 'primordial' like there could be any other kind."

The bunny nodded happily. "Yes, of course. It is only natural for living beings to evolve. In each world one or both species sooner or later evolves into something else. Whether for the better or worse is anyone's guess. So there are some worlds in which there are crossbreeds, some with superhumans, some with other kinds of demons. Fuck, in some worlds there isn't even a second species left, because one has hunted down the other or one goes naturally extinct. It's as I said, no two worlds are the same. And there are _lots_ of worlds. So you should begin by telling me something about your world. Then I can try to identify the correct one for you to try to go to."

The fox demon shrugged and sighed. "It really isn't that distinguishable. There used to be a lot of clan fights. But now there are a couple of nations and hidden villages with shinobi working as their main defense."

He paused when Fidelity clicked his tongue and shook his head. "That is the problem with all newcomers. That exactly there massively narrowed down the list of suitable possibilities. Did you truly believe, there would be only ninja villages for any kind of human in any world? There are hundreds and thousands of other and better ways to structure a society. So good, ninja villages. One point down. How about economy and technology - at what standard are they? The kinds of weapons and clothing used and so on? Any particular kind of animal? Even minuscule things could hint us to the right direction."

"Err… I have no fucking idea about economy. I mean humans plow fields, right? I assume by technology you mean the fireless lights and head radios that recently came up. Weapons are usually any kind of blades, really. Kunai, senbon, shuriken, swords mainly. Clothes are from some kind of plant as far as I know. I didn't really give a fuck about that."

Fidelity glanced his naked human body up and down. "Indeed. Tell me, harlot, aren't you cold without clothes? That is its main reason of existence after all. Even if you don't value human standards of modesty, nights can literally freeze your ass out here."

Kurama sneered in indignation. "I have no need for such pitiful crutches."

The fluffball regarded his slightly blue fingers and toes not-so-subtly and nodded slowly. "Yeah, right. Since you seem to have no positive regard for humans, why don't you tell me something about the demon society."

He blinked. "What? What society?"

Somehow, the bunny suddenly had a _really_ bad feeling about this. "You are a demon right?" Kurama nodded. "That obviously means, they are not extinct. So how is your kind living? In colonies or territories? Villages or widespread?" No, he did not recount that many possibilities, because he wanted it to be true. Because, if he was right, there were only a handful of worlds left to choose from and none of them-

"Well, there are only nine demons in existence including me." The bunny's stomach dropped. "Unless, you count the ten-tails. Then again, we nine are what's left of him. Yeah, and all of us have been sealed inside humans for a while now. Except for me now. Fate just set the string of my human vessel free and me as well in the process. Ever since I've been stuck in this shitty human like body. By the way, do you know, how I can get back my real body?"

The bunny started to hyperventilate. "You-you are a primordial from the Elemental Nations! Fuck no! I did not sign up for this shit!" Then the fucking furball bloody fainted.

—oOo—

He had not left his side in three days.

At first the servants, then the guards and finally his father had tried to get him to take a reprieve, had even offered to stay in his stead until he returned. He had only taken them up on their offer when needing to use the sanitary facilities. He ate, slept and read at his little brother's side and let the servants bring him anything, he might need.

Not that he had actually wanted anything at first. His father had nearly force fed him when he hadn't touched his meals. And when the servants had started to suggestively leave books within his reach, he had taken to reading some texts out loud for Naruto or furthering his research in dimensional travels to keep his mind occupied and from going crazy with worry.

He simply could not bear the thought of loosing him. Finally, after all those years, he had someone. Someone who understood, someone who shared, someone who actually cared. He could not loose that. He could not survive the loss of those sun-kissed grins or the warmth of his genuine smiles.

He still remembered every moment of pride, when his little brother achieved something, he had set his mind on. Like those chains. He had recently learned to use up to three yōki chains. The little blond had been so happy, it had been so infectious, that Sesshōmaru couldn't resist a small smile.

Another time he had finally managed to recite all prominent figures, clans and settlements in yōkai politics. It had been particularly difficult to work that into the kinsune's memories, but the relieved and honest laugh after being told, that he had managed perfectly, had been absolutely worth it. He would die, if he could never hear that laugh again.

"Sesshōmaru."

The inu heir did not even look up from his scroll. He knew it was his father, again. Seriously, in the last three days he had seen more of his father than in the past couple of months, maybe even years. So he only had to seclude himself to a silent watch and be sick with worry for his father to give a damn about him? Go figure.

"Sesshōmaru, look at me."

He sighed inwardly and reluctantly looked up, his expression in check. He could not defy a direct order. At least not, when it didn't cost him anything to follow it. His father's golden eyes looked at him worriedly. He knew, he should feel bad about making his father look that way, but to be honest he felt like his father deserved it. It must be the first time in a century that the old inu had looked that way because of him. What kind of father did that make him? Certainly not a good one.

The Inu no Taishō sighed deeply and pulled a seat next to him. Sesshōmaru blinked in surprise. That was a first as well. Would wonders never cease? For a long while nothing was said. There simply were two sets of golden eyes regarding each other, one cooly, the other … was that tension in them? He blinked.

"Sesshōmaru, this Tōga knows it is a difficult time for you, but Naruto-kun is perfectly safe here and in good hands. You need to rejoin the festivities. It is not healthy to stay here all the time. And you have a responsibility to our people to represent our strength. The final delegation will be arriving tonight and this one wants you there."

For a moment he was tempted to scrunch his nose in distain. Obviously his father cared more about politics than his own flesh and blood and the ward he had accepted. His supposed pack. Still, it was an order from the alpha. So he nodded tightly. "This Sesshōmaru shall attend the festivities tonight provided proper supervision of his little brother." He would leave them as soon as etiquette permitted and come back here to watch over his otouto.

Tōga gave him a thin smile in return. "Thank you. It will be done." Then he hesitated and seemed to think something over. Finally he added: "This Tōga has some good news as well." The young heir did not even raise an eyebrow. He simply waited. "This one knows, this might not be the best time to break the news, but… You will have another brother soon. He-"

The great dog general halted. Something about the expression in his son's face made him pause. He blinked. No, that was no illusion. His heir showed actual emotions on his face and they were… not good. Incredulity showed itself first. Then came outrage and anger. Then heated distain added to the mix. Fangs were bared.

"You-" Tōga's eyes widened ever so slightly. It was the first time, Sesshōmaru was at a loss for words. Or too angry to find them. And so furious, that his voice had actually trembled. Then suddenly, it was like a levee had broken and the words flooded out like a torrent.

" _How_ could you even _say_ that?! Have you no shame? Are you seriously trying to placate me with a new brother? That bastard hanyō you are having from that human whore you seem so proud to take into your chambers like an actual mate? Never mind that my mother still lives and is mated to you. Never mind the shame you bring to our pack by such a _weakness_. Do you actually think, a bastard born under those circumstances could ever hope to remotely replace my _real_ brother? _No one_ will ever take Naruto's place. He is my brother and no one else."

His nostrils flared and took in the sharp smell of fear and the bitter one of disappointment, his father emitted. His nose scrunched even further due to the latter smell and his voice became dangerously close to a whisper, his golden eyes blazing like little suns.

" _Get out_. You are no longer welcome here, _father_. I do not wish to ever see you again. Nor will I ever accept a bastard into my pack. You better hide that whore of yours. If I ever see her and that bastard she carries again, I will not hesitate to strike them down. You are dead for me. Yes, I will do my duties as heir. I will uphold the honor of the West. I will protect the pack with my strength. _But by the will of honor and justice, this Sesshōmaru no longer considers_ you _pack_. The kami know, you have long forgone your own duties and were simply to much of a coward to take that step. Now, _begone_. This one is done with you."

Sesshōmaru turned his back on him and kept his eyes trained on Naruto, his body shaking with absolute fury and shock. It was the ultimate gesture of dismissal. It was also a grave insult.

For a long while, Tōga simply stared at his back, an ache already forming in his chest, while still in a state of complete disbelief. He had not wanted this. He had not expected, that this would push him over the edge. Actually, he had hoped that he would take some sort of comfort or slight delight in the news. He obviously did not care about blood ties for his closest pack, as the kitsune boy could attest. Nor did he seem adverse to the thought of being a big brother.

Admittedly, he had not taken his mated status into account in that particular moment. Because honestly? The boy did not seem to particularly care for his mother. Nor had he thought, that the boy despised humans that much considering the supposed origins of his adopted little brother. Or did he simply not care?

Sadness flooded the old inu. His heir still stood with his back to him, completely stiff and every muscle tensed in anticipation. He was obviously prepared for possible retaliation. Sesshōmaru had been so agitated, that he had even forgotten any kind of proper speech during his rant. That had not happened since his mother had left the western palace.

Finally Tōga sighed silently: "This Tōga has taken notice of your declaration, but will ignore it, as you are obviously distraught. This one shall leave you now to your watch, but expects you at the festivities as befitting for the heir of the West." Then he took his leave.

Sesshōmaru meanwhile shook even harder. His father had not even dignified him by acknowledging his will. It was the ultimate insult.

Neither of them knew, that the vow had been heard throughout the realm of the gods.

—oOo—

Sesshōmaru sat at his father's right hand, neither one acknowledging the other and both particularly curt in their interactions with their guests. They sat at a low, but huge five-edged table. Four sides of the table representing the four cardinal directions and their respective royal clans. At their sides their respective vessel clans had taken their seats. And one side for the neutral clans. Behind each of them kneed their closest consultants.

On the western side sat the Ino no Taishō with his heir at his right hand and Basaku, the leader of the panther clan, at his left.

Uruha, the lord of the north, had his daughter Ayame on his right side and Naho, the kitsune clan leader, and her daughter Saho on his left.

In between north and east sat the neutral parties. Bokuseno had long felt the tension in the earth, that his roots were constantly observing, and had decided to show up, even though tree yōkai rarely left their territories. Or even uprooted. Kaguya had arrived without an heir as usual. Rumors said, she were barren. But this time she had surprised them by not coming alone as always, but bringing a consultant, a little white haired boy with no known name and a rather large mirror in his hands. Hasuke, the leader of the collective kappa clans, in contrast had arrived completely alone, without even a consultant or guard. He had said, that his heir excused himself but was currently unable to attend because of clan specific matters that needed tending to.

The southern side was mainly occupied by Ryūkotsusei. His sheer presence seemed to take up the majority of space. On either side of him sat Hahie with Kamon for the tanuki and Enena and Inina for the bakeneko respectively.

The eastern party was the one yet to arrive. The bats and birds had the longest way to travel and it was thus not unusual, that they arrived the last in the west.

Sesshōmaru regarded the collective yōkai leaders. Except for Hasuke, each of them had at least one or two consultants and a security detail at their backs. Behind Tōga himself sat the inu yōkai Futoshi and the flea demon Myōga. The place behind himself was empty. He had not chosen anyone else than his brother to sit there. Still, together with the panther consultants and both the panther and inu guards, their side had a mass of people. And the other sides were just as crammed.

Having expected that many yōkai attending, they had planned the gathering of the twelve bigger clan heads in one of the grander gardens. It provided everyone with plenty of space and fresh wind for those with more sensitive noses and tongues and less walls to echo the sound for those with the most sensitive ears. Further considering the mass of servants laying in wait for orders of any kind within hearing range the fresh air probably was a life saving idea.

The funny thing about this meeting was that they all waited in relative silence. Yes, there were some polite conversations. But for the amount of yōkai all gathered at one place, it was remarkably quiet. Each one of them felt the tension in the air, whether they let it show or not.

Finally a servant announced the arriving party: "The Lady of the East, Tekkei-sama, and her daughter, the heiress to the East, Abi-sama. With them Taigokumaru-sama, head of the bat clan, and his heir, Tsukuyomatu-sama."

All assembled yōkai turned and watched the delegation arrive. Tekkei of the blue fire honored her nickname through her blue flaming hair, while her daughter looked more normal with black hair and red eyes in comparison. The two of them held themselves as regal as one would expect from the leaders of the east.

The bats however were a stark contrast to their female elegance. The father was the allegory of a human nightmare with a face so grotesque, the royal yōkai tended to avoid him given the choice. His son while not resembling his clan head in the slightest encompassed strangely mismatching colors of icy hair, violet eyes and dark skin.

As the four of them sat and exchanged polite greetings with the other yōkai leaders, Sesshōmaru observed the herald with slightly narrowed eyes. Usually, the announcing servant executed his task and then retracted to his post. This one was not following the norm. He stayed, visibly pale, and waited for a polite moment to interrupt once again: "The Lady Consort of the West, Lady of the Skies, Kimi-sama."

The young heir's breath hitched a little when he saw her enter. She was as beautiful as he remembered. Flawless skin, blinding white hair, purple birth markings and on her forehead the same mark, that adorned his own, the indigo symbol of the House of the Moon. Draped in a richly decorated kimono and her silky pelt she looked like a goddess descended onto the mortal realm.

In his amazement he hadn't notices the garden grow quiet. The eastern delegation looked somewhat smug and superior in their foreknowledge. The southern party watched with interest, while the North regarded the scene in contemplation.

His father's face was made of stone. Everyone could see the likeness of father and son sitting side by side, an expressionless face to mask any emotion to give no one any kind of ammunition. Tōga nonetheless stood with the rest of the assembled yōkai and inclined his head ever so slightly while holding out his hand to seat her on his left, where a servant had hurried to position a lavish cushion for the lady of the house.

She sat down in a seiza graciously. Her sophisticated manner was no doubt befitting for the lady consort of the Inu no Taishō. And her mate conducted himself to the utmost standards befitting his station. They looked like a match made by the kami themselves. Beautiful and deadly. And still, thicker tension than ever hung in the air as the pair sat side by side for the first time in a century.

The lord of the West might have banished her from his castle, but in a political setting such as this, there was nothing he could do about her presence without loosing face. After all, she was still his mate, whether he liked it or not. To show disagreement within the pack to other clans was showing weakness. And inu yōkai showed no weakness or their reign was as good as over.

So Tōga did the only sensible thing. He smiled and swung his arms out in an opening gesture. "Honorable guests, family, friends, vassals and allies. This Tōga welcomes you in his humble home. It is this one's pleasure to host you during this solstice. The festivities shall start tomorrow at noon with the customary honoring of the sun and shall proceed with performances of all the yōkai clans and their offerings. As all yōkai will probably celebrate quite enthusiastically tomorrow night, let this night be a calm one of commemorating this joyful gathering and exchanging news and pleasantries. The western cooks have given their best to please you all. So let the feast begin."

While a stream of yōkai suddenly surrounded them all and put an obscene amount of food on the table, the young inu still sat stiff in his cushin, his gaze drifting towards his parents every couple of seconds and gliding over the guests whenever he catched himself doing so. He was still in shock and couldn't quite process his mother's appearance yet.

"You look well, my son."

Startled, but not letting it show, he looked yet again to his mother on his father's other side. She smiled warmly at him, while his father stoically looked ahead and pretended not to hear anything.

He inclined his head, his eyes burning gold but guarded. "As do you, honorable mother." After all, he did not know, how to interact with her. He hadn't seen her in such a long time and didn't know about her intentions or level of affection, if existing. The time alone in the western palace had made him cautious. Titles, jokes and statements alike usually had double meanings, if not tripple. And one thing he remembered about his mother was that she was a goddess of the political game. His tutors still gushed about her grace in socializing and giving white flowery threats, even though they did it in whispers and shadows. After all, her name had been banned from this place as long as herself. That her legend still persisted only proved her skills.

The lady consort's smile widened a little. "So formal. Time passes so quickly. This Kimi's little son has grown up quite well."

"You honor this one. It is only natural. After all, it has been a while since this Sesshōmaru was graced with your presence."

She nodded sadly. It was every inch a fake. Not that he expected any less in such a formal setting. "Yes, indeed. Far too long for this one's feeble and longing heart. Alas, responsibilities were to be minded. The lands do not rule themselves after all."

"Quite so. This Tōga looks forward to your report after this feast, honorable mate. This one shall welcome you in his study."

The other two dog demons' heads snapped to the Inu no Taishō, who still did not look to either of them and calmly sipped his tea. Finally the lady inclined hers, smiling. "As you wish, Mylord." Then she turned effortless towards the wolf clan. "It is a pleasure to see you again, Uruha-sama, Ayame-san. How is Choro-sama faring? It has been too long since this Kimi last saw him."

Sesshōmaru tuned all of the polite chatter out and finished his meal in silence. As soon as was deemed acceptable, he excused himself from the gathering and left the lowly lit gardens. He was accompanied by a couple of guards as no one of importance was allowed to move freely since the assassination attempt. It was quite annoying, but he understood and accepted it.

He drew the line at entering his chambers, however. The guards took up position in front of his door instead. Hatsuo looked up from his post beside his little brother's bed and bowed deeply in deference. "Young heir, there have been no changes in his condition."

Sesshōmaru nodded and gestures him to leave. As soon as his minder had left, he created a shadow clone. He regarded his double with slightly narrowed eyes. "You know, what to do?" The clone nodded and masked his yōki presence with a precision and control, he was known for among his tutors. The rest of the castle had yet to see him in action. Then the shadow clone jumped out the window.

The young inu sat down next to his brother and ran his fingers through the slightly charred blond hair in front of him. The brunt of the explosion had impacted on his little brother's lower back. Still, the kitsune would need a hair trimming as soon as he was awake.

He was just thankful, that he had been paranoid enough to leave a pair of logs in their chambers as soon as he had acquired the knowledge of his brother's skills. Otherwise Naruto might now be dead. The kawarimi had probably saved his life.

Silently sighing he rested his eyes just for a moment. The next, he was deeply asleep, nightmares plaguing his restless night.

—oOo—

"Why have you come?"

The elegant inu raised an eyebrow and seated herself without care. "My, how uncouth, dear mate. It seems the century has not been as kind to you as it has been to Sesshōmaru. My dear boy has grown up so fast." She sighed theatrically. "But then again, I have been forbidden to see him sooner. Any thoughts on that you would care to share, _beloved_?"

The Inu no Taishō growled deeply. "Everyone has made their choices. You decided to betray me. I decided not to accept any feeble excuses. Sesshōmaru decided to stay here with me. What more is there to think about?"

She giggled lightly and batted her eyelashes at him in fake innocence. "Ah, but then again, you have had quite some difficulties, if the spirits told me correctly. The boy is like me, through and through, I heard. Cold and calculating, as many have called me before as well." She cocked her head as if pondering. "I cannot imagine why, though."

Tōga snarled in disgust. "Yes, why indeed." The sarcasm could have dried a lake. "I do not know, why you have decided to come here after all this time, but do not interfere in this lordship's diplomatic relations. Do not spin any of those creative truths you seem so fond of. And most of all, stay away from the boy."

Her amusement didn't fade. If anything, it increased. "' _The boy'?_ What is he, the stable hand? Listen to yourself, my dear. You cannot even say 'son' voluntarily. This just shows he would have been better off with me. The House of the Moon is just as old and honorable as the House of the Fang. He would have made a fine lord of the skies. Yet he decided to stay in the West. And you cannot even appreciate what the kami have gifted you. An heir anyone would have been proud to have. An heir as strong as any grown yōkai, even most daiyōkai, despite his young age if the training results I received are accurate. He will be a kami in his prime. Pride and strength. He encompasses everything the inu yōkai stand for. And yet." Her eyes turned cold. "And yet." More didn't need to be said out loud.

Tōga did not avert his gaze, but his jaw clenched just like Sesshōmaru's when indignant, annoyed or ashamed. The hailed general never could find the right words to counter the golden tongue of his mate. Her tongue was as sharp and deadly as his swords. She had fought the polite war, while he had fought the bloody war. It had been the reason why they had conquered so many central lands in their time together. So he simply replied: "That is no longer your concern. Sesshōmaru is indeed a fine heir and will succeed me without difficulty. Anything else does not matter. _You_ do not matter, Kimi."

For the first time, the lady inu twitched slightly. Yet still smiling she retorted: "I do not? My, I am inconsolable that I must disappoint you so, beloved mate. Solely my appearance together with the Lady of the East is shaking the foundations of your reign, is it not? You should be careful, what you say, my dear, people might not come to the correct conclusions. And it would be such a shame to see this lands in flames just because you could not stand my presence for a couple of days."

Another growl vibrated in the lord's throat, but he did not show his teeth. He knew, when he was bested. "Indeed. We would not want that. So let us do our utmost not to set these lands on fire. After all, it is also _your_ heir, that would need to tend to its ashes."

She smiled coyly. "As you wish, mate. I would hate to destroy my son's inheritance after all. In fact, I shall make the most of my time here. Who knows, when I will have the opportunity to visit next?"

The lord did not reply. A visible shudder ran through his back at the frightening sight of the lady's perfect smile. She had ever been the only foe he truly feared. And for all the right reasons as well.

She stood up in a fluent move and stole a passionate kiss right from his lips. Then she calmly walked towards the door, while Tōga was still frozen. Just before leaving, she turned around. Her tongue licked over her lower lip as she regarded her unmoving mate lasciviously over her shoulder. "Do greet that human lover of yours for me, will you, dear?"

The lady consort of the West and lady of the skies was gone before the Inu no Taishō could even startle. Once again, his mate had shaken him to the core and his thoughts circled themselves in worry. His alliances, his lands, his heir, his lover and their expected child. All of them were fair game in her eyes. And he knew, she would not hesitate to crush him if she so desired it.

He did not even notice the shadow that crept carefully out of the study, slightly shaken itself.

—oOo—

There was such a thing as too much free will.

At least that was the case in Honor's opinion. It gave one responsibility for one's actions and inaction. And Honor was so, so tired of it. Responsibility, the force to decide the right path, was exhausting and nothing short of torture.

It was the reason, Honor usually liked Fate. She kept everything in check. Until she did not.

Once again her snap decision had forced Honor into a position, the kami did not appreciate. Oh, Honor knew what would happen. The same as it always did, when someone of such a fate was let free.

Fate and Justice would usually fight side by side against Order and Chaos. It was the only time, the latter pair ever stood together. And nothing was more dangerous than Order and Chaos in coexistence. It would lead to the inevitable.

War.

Now the only question was, on which side Honor would stand this time. And how the kami would answer the call.

—oOo—

Alright, I admit it. I am lazy. I started to use 'ō' because thinking about whether to use 'ou' or simply 'o' is just too much of a headache. Both ways look kinda wrong depending on the word and I can't keep changing my mind. Still, I am way too lazy to change it in the last chapters. At least for now. Should I ever be bored, I know what to do, but for now the last couple of chapters will remain unchanged. But in the future I will continue to use 'ō'.

Sooo… I hope you enjoy the chapter and are not too disappointed by the shortage of Naruto. I promise, I will make it up to you guys;).

Oh and I _really_ hope you liked Kimi so far. You will get to know the other yōkai (more or less) as well in the following chapters, but she is a crucial figure. And finally I hope, I did make you curious about her past with Tōga and such. You will not learn about everything. This story is centered around the boys after all. Still, a bit of their history will also be important in this arc.

Honor… I have a plan for… it, as small as it might be. Seriously, someone tell me whether Honor is male or female. I simply cannot decide.

Well, that's all from me for now. Next chapter will be up next week as usual.

Ps: Thank you all for the feedback. It always makes my heart happy:). Feel free to **review** this chapter as well!

 **doomqwer:** Yeah, I felt for him the entire time i wrote about Inina…

 **buterflypuss:** Thank you:)

 **Silvermane1:** huh. Actually the question of summons completely slipped my mind. Now that you've mentioned it though I'll think about it…

 **bootskitty328:** yay! Someone picked up on that. I'm so proud of you!:D

 **keotaka1:** well, now the wait is over. Always a pleasure to keep my readers satisfied:).

 **kagewolf25:** Wow that _is_ a lot of hatred. I would have rather expected such a reaction after chapter 10, not 9. Still, you can relax. Tōga's Death is something I will certainly not change. It would change too much of the original plot for my taste. Naruto influencing everything will be enough…

 **Guest:** Hey, it worked:). Well, I _did_ leave a hint with the hand signs. Admittedly, I would have been too lazy to look them up myself as well, if I was a reader.

 **Hanyouprincess3:** Thanks. I appreciate it. Naturo… Sorry to disappoint you, but you will have a real answer to his condition next chapter;).


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